Some Nights
by Flynne
Summary: Missing scenes from the 2k3 Ninja Tribunal story arc. A series of one-shots focusing both on April and the Turtles. Final chapter: Carry On. "So...what now, Fearless?" "Now...things get back to normal, I guess." "That bad, huh?"
1. Gone

_While I really like the 2k3 season 5 story arc with the Ninja Tribunal, I always felt like there was a lot of the "in-between" stuff that got left out. So this is me getting that out of my system. _:)_ Some of these one-shots will be shorter, some longer, and they'll focus both on April and the Turtles. Story title and the song lyrics in chapter 1 are from "Some Nights", by Fun._

* * *

**Some nights I stay up cashing in my bad luck**

Gone

The knock was quiet, but years of being friends with ninjas had turned April into a light sleeper. She opened her eyes and rolled out of bed, pulling her robe on over her pajamas. She shook her head ruefully as she saw the red numbers on her alarm clock: 1:33. The orange light from the street lamps provided enough illumination for her to move about, so she made her way to the front room cloaked in dim half-light. No familiar hard-shelled silhouette was lingering on the fire escape, though, and she frowned a little in confusion – but the gentle rap came again from the door to her apartment. She looked through the peep hole into the dim hallway, but saw no one.

"Is someone there?" she called softly.

The reply came at once, startling her: "Splinter."

She opened the door immediately, stepping back to allow him to enter. A jolt of surprise coursed through her as a very short, very round _human_ followed the Rat inside. Both were wearing hooded cloaks and carrying rucksacks, and both had their arms full of boxes. The little man squinted and smirked up at her, but remained silent.

"What's going on?" she asked, hurrying to close the blinds and turn on the lamp by her couch. She blinked and rubbed her eyes in the sudden brightness as Splinter set down his burdens and pulled back his hood.

The fear and fury tangled in his eyes turned her insides to ice.

"What happened?" she asked breathlessly.

"My sons have been kidnapped." The little round man tutted a bit under his breath, and Splinter shot a knife-like glance in his direction. "There is no other word for it."

The air seemed to have been sucked out of the room. "How – how could this happen?" April stammered.

"It does not matter how," Splinter replied. "All that matters is that they are gone, taken without warning. And I am going after them."

She nodded firmly. "Okay. Give me two minutes to get dressed and call Casey."

"No, Miss O'Neil." He shook his head. "There is nothing you can do."

Her heart became heavy with dread. "What do you mean by that?" she forced out.

"I mean that where I am going, you cannot follow."

She bunched her fists in the lapels of her bathrobe. "You know where they are?"

"Yes," he said coldly.

"So you know who kidnapped them?"

"Yes."

"Then why can't I – "

"Miss O'Neil." He took a slow breath, and when he spoke again, the bitter frost was gone from his voice, leaving only a gentle sadness behind. "I must ask that you trust me on this. I know who has taken my sons and I know where I must go. Please understand that I would welcome your help if I could accept it, but I cannot."

April blinked back sudden tears and nodded.

"There is...one favor I would ask of you," Splinter said quietly. He stooped a bit and patted one of the boxes he had brought in. A plaintive, familiar _mew_ came from inside, and April recognized Klunk's carrier. She was Klunk's designated human caretaker and transport to the vet when he needed his yearly checkups, and the friendly orange cat was used to visiting April's apartment. April was always happy to see him, but the implications of Splinter bringing him over like this sent a cold thrill of alarm skittering along her nerves. She glanced quickly at the contents of the other boxes: Cat food. Litter. The small collection of cat toys Mikey had made from string and old socks and dropped bird feathers.

"I need someone to care for Klunk," he continued, lowering his eyes. "I cannot simply leave him behind and he should not be turned out into the street."

A sharp pang of sadness made her chest hurt. "How long will you be gone?"

"I do not know."

The tears brimming in her eyes finally spilled over and she couldn't keep the tremor out of her voice. "Will you come back?"

He sighed. "I do not know." His eyes grew bright and tears left dark streaks in the fur on his cheeks. That more than anything frightened April. Never, not even in the darkest, most dangerous times they had lived through, had she seen Splinter cry.

A determined fire kindled in her green eyes. "I'll take care of Klunk until you get back," she said firmly.

The emphasis she placed on the word "until" did not escape him. "Thank you," he said with a sad smile. He fixed her with a deep, penetrating gaze. "You have been a joy to my sons, Miss O'Neil...and to myself. I wish you every happiness." And then, for the first time since she had known him, Splinter stepped forward and opened his arms to her. April knelt on the floor and leaned into his embrace. His arms were wiry, but solid and strong, and he smelled of incense and the night air. He held her tightly for a moment, then his whiskers tickled her ear as he whispered, "Farewell, Daughter."


	2. Unfamiliar Road

_This chapter takes place during the first episode of season 5, "Lap of the Gods", after they arrive at the Tribunal's monastery but before Splinter's arrival. The episode did not specify how much time passed, but this story assumes that at least one full day went by, if not more. Song lyrics are from "Home" by Phillip Phillips. The flashback (in italics) alludes to events after "The Shredder Strikes Back"._

* * *

**Hold on to me as you go  
****As we roll down this unfamiliar road  
****And although this wave is stringing us along  
****Just know you're not alone**

Unfamiliar Road

It was harder to breathe up there. The air was thin and cold, and it didn't fill his chest like he was accustomed to. His heart rate was just a little faster than usual as his body attempted to compensate. Raphael took another too-deep breath and coughed as he overfilled his lungs.

"You're all right, Raph?"

He grimaced and waved away Leo's concern. His older brother saw there was no real irritation in the gesture and turned back to Don. "I just want to be sure," Leo said, resuming their conversation.

"Really, I'm fine," Donny reassured him patiently, mouth twitching in amusement as he saw Raph roll his eyes behind Leonardo's back. Their big brother had been in full watchdog mode since they had been abducted. "It's just cramping a little from the lower oxygen." His broad hand was kneading the nearly-healed muscle of his right thigh where the olive skin was marred by a jagged, slowly-fading scar.

"Okay, I think this is it," Mike announced as he came back in the room. His arms were full of rolled sleeping mats, blankets, and a few towels. "Raphie-boy, where do you want to sleep?"

"Where are _you_ sleeping?"

"I will be sleeping right...here!" he answered with a grin, letting one of the sleeping mats plop to the floor.

He pointed at the far corner of the room. "Fine. Put me over there."

"One of these days, you will appreciate me, brother mine," Mikey sniffed, feigning hurt as he moved to comply.

"I appreciate the fact that you snore like a dump truck." There was the sound of a snort and Raph thought he heard Donatello mutter something about pots and kettles. Leo snickered. Raph's eyes narrowed. "Something you wanna share with the rest of the class, Donny?"

Michelangelo continued laying out the sleeping mats. Although the Tribunal had provided each of the acolytes their own room, the brothers had decided to bunk together in Leo's quarters, which were the largest. They believed that the four masters meant them no real harm, but they didn't trust them and their instincts rebelled at the thought of being separated.

Raphael fidgeted a little, looking around the room. It felt too much like the cell where they'd awakened in the ship. The door to their room was unlocked, but it was still a prison. Even if they had permission to leave, they had no way of leaving the mountain.

"I'm goin' out," he announced.

"Where?" Mikey asked.

"Just out. I wanna look around. I'll be back later." He picked up his sai – no way was he walking around unarmed – and slipped out the door. The fortress was eerily silent except for the nearly constant sound of the rushing wind. He veered to the right, where he thought he'd seen an exit earlier. There _was _a door there down a narrow hallway, but the corridor was lined with the motionless silhouettes of Mokuzai no Bushi. He felt his hackles rise as he walked through, but the tonfa-wielding wooden warriors didn't stir as he passed. _One of these days, Pinocchio, we're gonna have us a rematch and I'll turn you into toothpicks,_ he thought darkly.

He half expected the door to be locked, but it opened easily under his hand and he stepped out into the cool night air. He had exited through the outer wall of the fortress. A walkway of cobbled stone about twenty feet wide wrapped around the building. All that separated him from a very long drop was a stone wall. Torchlight blazed from the high windows of the fortress, but the glow didn't reach down below where he was. The only light was the platinum-colored starlight that coated everything around him like frost. He walked until he was out of sight but not out of earshot of his brothers, then moved to the very edge of the walkway and rested his folded arms on the wall, peering over into the abyss below. Silver clouds swirled in the night wind several fathoms below, obscuring any view he might have had of the ground. The breeze caught the tails of his mask in its playful grip and pulled them forward to flutter out over the emptiness.

He hadn't come outside to look down, though. With one last glance at the clouds below, he lifted his eyes and looked at the stars. They seemed almost close enough to touch. Something sweet and painful twisted in his chest as he studied their silver fire. He had never seem them so big and so bright, not even out in the isolated Massachusetts countryside at Casey's farm.

* * *

_The door behind him opened with a soft creak and he heard a familiar soft step on the weather-beaten wooden porch._ _"Raph? What are you doing out here?"_

"_Just looking," he said, waving his hand in the general direction of the sky._

_Don shut the door behind him and moved to sit beside his brother on the top step of the porch. "It's something, isn't it?" he said quietly. The cold night air turned his words into puffs of vapor._

"_I didn't realize there were so many," Raph answered in the same tone. "I mean...I knew they were there and I'd seen pictures, but __**we**__ never could see 'em."_

_Don smiled, looking up at the shimmering Milky Way spilled across the blue-black sky. "I knew what you meant. And you're right. Downtown New York City isn't exactly the best place for stargazing." They sat side-by-side for a few minutes, just resting. They had hardly stirred from inside the farmhouse for the past several days. Only now that Leonardo had both feet firmly on the path to recovery were they starting to relax. Tonight was the first time that Raphael had started paying attention to the outside world. He had been on his way to bed, but a glance out the window had shown him a glimpse of a night sky that he had never seen outside of the city, so he had moved out to the porch to watch the stars for a while._

"_You did good this week," he said, breaking the silence. "Both with fixing the house and fixing up Leo."_

"_I didn't do it on my own," Donny said, bumping his shoulder against Raph's. "You were the one who repaired the furnace, remember?" Raph just grunted dismissively, but he didn't move away. The warmth of his brother's arm against his biceps was a marked contrast to the winter night. The silver-studded sky was cloudless, but there was a scent of snow on the breeze._

"_Is everyone else asleep?"_

"_Ain't nobody here but us chickens," Don answered. Raph gave him a sidelong glance. "It's a song? Louis Jordan?" An eye ridge arched over a red mask. Don sighed and gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Yes, everyone else is asleep." As if prompted by the question, he yawned and scrubbed a hand across his face. "We should probably turn in, too."_

"_Yeah."_

_But they didn't move. They stayed on the porch and watched the stars slowly march across the sky. Raph didn't notice Don growing heavier against him until his brother listed forward and nearly tumbled off the porch. Don jerked awake with a muffled "Fwuh?" as Raph's hand slapped against his plastron, halting his fall._

"_Okay, Genius," Raph said with gruff affection. "Time to tuck you in." Donatello took the hand held out to him and used the leverage to climb to his feet, allowing his brother to steer him into the house, up the stairs, and give him a firm but gentle shove to topple him face-first into bed. _

"_Thanksssraph..." he slurred. Raph just smirked and tugged the blanket over Don's carapace before heading for his own bed. He fell asleep staring at the window as Orion blazed down at him._

* * *

Orion stretched across the sky above him now. He stared hard at the hunter's silhouette, willing the constellation to consume his sight as his peripheral vision blurred and faded. He didn't want to think about this new and strange place. He didn't want to be reminded that he was so far from home. He didn't want to think about Splinter.

But he did anyway. Had their master waited up for them? He would have been meditating, probably, until the silence of the lair became oppressive. He would look up, realizing he was alone – where were his sons? Why weren't they home? But he probably hadn't been worried. His sons always returned by sunup. But as the hours passed and the dawn crept closer, Raph knew that he would have begun to be uneasy. For most people, sunrise was a time of renewal and hope. For his nocturnal clan, it meant danger and the risk of discovery – and when the sun stepped over the horizon and they hadn't returned, Splinter would have known that something had befallen his family.

He didn't want to think about the look on Splinter's face when he realized his sons had disappeared.

"Raphael? Is that you?" He didn't visibly twitch, but the unexpected voice had startled him. He looked over his shoulder to see Joi peering at him through her half-open shutters. She studied him a little uncertainly. "What are you doing out there?"

He shrugged and turned back to gaze at the stars. "Just looking."

The soft rustle of fabric was the only sound he heard as Joi climbed out her ground-floor window and dropped lightly to the ground. The back of his neck prickled as she came up behind him – an instinctive reaction if someone he didn't know approached him – but he ignored it. The aborted revolt against the Tribunal earlier had convinced him and his brothers that the four humans could be trusted.

She stopped next to him and tilted her face up at the cloudless sky. "I can see why you came out here."

He snorted. "I'm just glad they're familiar. Proves we're still on Earth. I gotta confess, I had my doubts."

Her brows lifted. "You thought you weren't on Earth? Where else could you possibly be?"

He cocked an eye ridge in response. "You see people like me and my brothers and you don't think there could be aliens?"

That took a moment to sink in. "Are you?" she asked hesitantly. "Aliens?"

"No. One hundred percent native Earth turtle, here. Although there _were_ aliens involved." He shook his head at the half-curious, half-anxious look that crossed her face. "You don't wanna know."

"If you say so," she said dubiously. But she didn't leave. She just folded her arms and leaned her hip against the wall, looking at the stars. Even though she wasn't looking directly at him, he was aware of her scrutiny. When she spoke again, though, she didn't say what he was anticipating. Most people asked about his mutation or wanted to know more about what kind of animal he was, but instead she said, "You fight well. You and your brothers. Who taught you?"

He hesitated a moment before answering, deciding how much he could say. "Our dad. He started training us almost before we could walk." But he didn't want to think about Splinter. "You're pretty good, yourself." Truthfully, he'd been impressed earlier when she had called for his aid fighting the Mokuzai no Bushi. She'd seen that their martial arts style was compatible with hers, and he realized that intuitively, he'd known it, too. He hadn't had to second-guess what she wanted when she reached for his hands.

"I was trained by my aunt." She paused briefly, then changed the subject, clearly not wanting to speak of _her_ family more either. Her voice hardened a little as she went on. "The Tribunal chose their acolytes wisely. I talked a little with Adam. Neither one of us has anyone that will miss us. Any family we have is used to us disappearing for months – years – at a time. They won't come looking. I'd wager it's the same with Tora and Faraji. And..." She trailed off, looking at him.

Raph clenched his teeth, dropping his eyes from the stars to look at the roiling clouds below. _And Master Splinter can't exactly file a missing Turtles report with the NYPD. He has to look on his own. And he doesn't even know where to start._

"Yeah, well..." he growled. "If they're looking for lap dogs, they ain't reckoned on how big our teeth are."

"I can believe that," Joi said with wry humor. "Still, despite everything...it's good to know we've got friends here." It wasn't a question, but the curious lilt in her voice told him that she was feeling him out, trying to determine if he and his family felt the same way.

He looked at her for a minute or two before giving her a nod and a spare smile. "Guess it is."

They stood in silence for a while longer as a cluster of meteorites traced fiery arcs across the sky. "I should go," Raph said finally. "From the sound of it, we've gotta be up pretty early tomorrow. First day of school and all that."

She rolled her eyes and turned to go, but sounded amused when she answered. "Good night, Raphael."

"Hey."

She half-turned, looking back at him over her shoulder.

"It's Raph. The only person who calls me 'Raphael' all the time is my dad."

Her eyes softened. "Good night, Raph." She put her hand on her windowsill and vaulted lightly inside, latching her shutters behind her. Raph started walking back to his family's quarters. His chest hurt again, but not from the thin atmosphere. The way Joi had looked at him just now reminded him so much of the fond, sisterly way April looked at him that an almost overwhelming pang of homesickness had plowed into him like a Mack truck. He and his brothers were adaptable – they had to be – and adventure called to each of them and made their blood sing. But this wasn't just another adventure. This was conscription. And it wasn't likely that they would see New York or their father for a very, very long time...if they ever did again.

He passed the silent wooden sentries once again, pacing soundlessly through the empty hallways until he reached his room. He eased the door open and stepped into a darkened room. Quiet breathing was the only sound that reached his ears, and he paused for a moment, letting his eyes adjust to the dark. His brothers had lined their sleeping mats up against one wall of the room. Casting his eyes about, he saw his mat in the far corner where he'd told Mikey to leave it.

He stood there for a moment, looking at the silhouettes of his slumbering brothers. Then he gave a resigned sigh and crossed the room, grabbing his mat by the corner and dragging it back until he reached the place where his brothers slept, stopping at the end of the row next to Mikey. He let the mat slide to the floor with a _flump_ and lay down with his back to his brothers, facing the door. For a moment or two, there was utter silence.

Then he felt the familiar touch of a warm, three-fingered hand on top of his head as a half-awake Mike gave him a sleepy noogie. He reached up and swatted the hand away, but as he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, he was smiling.

**Settle down, it'll all be clear  
****Don't pay no mind to the demons  
****They fill you with fear  
****The trouble it might drag you down  
****If you get lost you can always be found  
****Just know you're not alone**


	3. Omen

_Just a couple little plot bunnies that were hopping around my head. This picks up right at the end of "Lap of the Gods" and carries through to the very beginning of "Demons and Dragons", with a brief allusion to "Same as it Never Was". Song lyrics are from "Some Nights", by Fun._

* * *

**This is it, boys, this is war**

Omen

The Tribunal disappeared in a cloud of smoke, leaving the acolytes in stunned silence. For several long minutes, nobody spoke, trying to process the fact that their minds had been forcibly taken over and they had just watched their own deaths.

Michelangelo was the first to speak. "So let me get this straight..." he said, rubbing his head, "None of that was real?"

"Brilliant deduction, Sherlock Shell-for-brains," Raph growled. Tora looked at the red-banded Turtle apprehensively, but his brothers knew that Raph wasn't angry at Mike.

Leo looked grim. "Oh, it was real, all right," he said, frowning into the emerald pool before him. "Our first real lesson with the Tribunal. And I have a feeling there's a lot more to learn." He climbed to his feet, turning to face Splinter as the master approached from behind. "Master Splinter, did you see it, too?"

"I did." A strange, hard look was in Splinter's eyes that gave his sons pause, but it disappeared in the next instant as he reached out and touched Leonardo's forearm with one hand and placing his other on the curve of Michelangelo's shell. "But the vision is over and we should not dwell on it. I am simply glad that I have found you."

Leonardo smiled, briefly resting his hand on his father's shoulder. He turned to the four humans, who had risen to their feet, and introduced each of them to Splinter. Despite Adam's initial reaction ("Dude, your Sensei is a _rat_."), all four of them had seen enough unusual things over the past several days to take the meeting in stride.

"Master Splinter," Leo said, "About the vision we all had...the fire demon – we couldn't beat it. But Don did something...All I remember was seeing a bright light from where he was standing. I didn't see what he did. Donny, do you remember..." He trailed off, face darkening in concern as he looked to his purple-banded brother.

Donatello, still sitting on the floor, hadn't heard. The vision had ended, giving him a sensation of being suddenly doused with icy water, and he hadn't been able to stop shivering. His eyes were fixed on the empty thrones above him, but his vision was clouded by the dark memories, old and new, that crashed together in his mind.

_Mikey, older, battered, one-armed, rage and despair etched in his lined face._

_Mikey, streaking off to obey Leo's order to save the Tribunal, only to be crushed under falling rock. The bloodstained debris tumbled against Don's feet as he ran, evading the fire-demon._

_Splinter, already gone, nothing left but a moss-covered gravestone embedded in cracked, dry ground._

_Splinter, his father, the steady center of his family, impaled by falling beams. _

_This time, his own death – he could see it coming, feel his chest crushed as the fire-demon's tail cannoned into him – but the vision wouldn't let him rest. The pain tore at his body, tore at his mind, and he saw Raphael and Leonardo fall, burned and bleeding..._

_Raphael, half-blinded with one side of his mask stitched closed, crawling over to Leo's broken body with the last of his strength. _

_Raphael, lying trembling in a crater gouged by his own body, struggling for breath, too weak even to reach for Leonardo as his brother gasped out an apology for his failure._

_Leonardo, not blind this time, able to see his death bending over him like a black serpent._

"Donny." A firm hand clamped down on his shoulder. It hurt, but he was grateful for it because the strength of the hold pulled him from his thoughts. He blinked dazedly at Michelangelo as his vision cleared. Mike's eyes were unusually solemn, and a knowing expression lingered in their blue depths. Then soft humor stole onto his face as he smiled and he gave his brother a little shake. "Take a breath before you pass out, Dude."

He hadn't realized he'd been holding his breath. His chest was burning. He inhaled sharply, looking around like someone who had just awakened. Everyone was watching him – the humans with mild curiosity, his family with concern.

Splinter was the first to move. "It is getting late," he said, bowing once again to the human acolytes. "Perhaps it would be best if we kept the rest of our conversation until morning."

"I agree," Joi said, picking up on the cue. She and Tora bowed formally to Splinter (Adam and Faraji imitating the movement slightly less gracefully) and led her counterparts back to their wing of the palace.

"Donatello, are you all right?" Splinter asked, advancing to stand beside Don.

"I – yes, I'm fine," he forced out.

But he wasn't. This was the second time an unknown entity had forced itself into his mind. It hadn't hurt the way the Triceratons' mind probe had hurt, but it had left an aching, hollow feeling deep within his chest. This was the second time he had been forced to watch the violent death of his family. It had been a vision this time, not the devastating alternate reality the Daimyo's son had sent him to, but it had _felt _real. And it had left behind a terrible cold doubt that perhaps the family he saw in front of him now wasn't real, either.

What if they were already dead and just didn't know it?

Splinter, ever perceptive and wise to the cause of his sons' distress, reached out to rest his hand on the top of Donatello's head. It was an unusually tender gesture that would have embarrassed the ninja had anyone else been around...but it was also something that his father hadn't done for a long time, not since he was very young. And instinctively, he knew it was something that an outside invader to his thoughts would not know. It wouldn't be something they would even look for. An invader searched for the hurtful and the frightening places...not the sacred. The warmth in the familiar coffee-black eyes chased away the last of the chill clinging to his spirit as Splinter said gently, "_This_ is real, my son."

* * *

**But I still wake up  
****I still see your ghost  
****Oh, Lord, I'm still not sure what I stand for **

He sat up with a jolt, gasping as if he had just sprinted a mile, blinking tear-filled eyes in the dimly lit room. His heart felt as if it were going to pound out of his thin chest. Splinter fisted his hands in his blanket, forcing himself to take calm, slow breaths. But he still trembled, the dream of his sons' broken bodies hovering in front of his mind like a specter. He cast his gaze around the room, at his sleeping sons softly illuminated by the light of the rising crescent moon. "What have you gotten yourselves into?" he breathed.

But it was a question he knew the answer to.

"_How can they possibly understand what is at stake when you have told them nothing?"_

He had been outraged by the Tribunal's deliberate withholding of the truth, but his anger had also been directed toward himself. Guilt gnawed at his bones, sharp and deep. How much had he, himself, concealed from his sons? He had told himself it was to protect them, it was for their own good – why should they fear some unknown threat that would probably never manifest?

How could he have believed that the Tribunal would forget about four exceptionally perceptive and innately talented warriors?

Splinter rubbed his hands across his face as his anxiously bristling fur slowly settled flat against his body. With the talons of the dream still sunk deep in his mind, simply hearing and smelling his sons was not enough. He rose from his bed – slower than he used to be, but just as silent – and drifted to the other side of the room, drawing near to Raphael's side. His second son's expression was stern even in repose. Only when he was deeply, deeply asleep did Raphael's face become truly peaceful. Splinter placed his hand very softly against his son's cheek, feeling the corners of his mouth lift as Raphael turned his face infinitesimally into the touch.

He moved between his sleeping sons, a soundless shadow – gently lifting Michelangelo's outflung foot back onto his sleeping mat, pulling Donatello's blanket over his shell. He came to a stop by Leonardo's bed. Despite the callous way the Tribunal treated their acolytes, they had paid attention to their needs and the sleeping mats were padded enough so that his dome-shelled sons could sleep comfortably on their backs if they so chose.

His eldest was stretched out, supine, with one hand resting lightly on his chest. He was sound asleep, but when Splinter brushed a hand against his forehead, his breathing quickened and he blinked sleepy golden-brown eyes up at his father.

"Sensei? What is it?" he murmured.

The Rat hadn't meant to wake him, but he should have known that Leonardo would stir. His sons knew his touch even while sleeping, and he knew if they had been in their home, the blue-masked Turtle would have remained asleep. Here in a strange land, surrounded by questionable allies, the leader in Leonardo would not allow him to sleep through any disturbances.

"I..." The explanation died in his throat. _I needed to see you. To touch you. To reassure myself that my sons were truly here, together, and unhurt. I am afraid for you._

His uncharacteristic hesitation pulled Leonardo completely out from beneath the veil of dreams and he sat up in bed, scrubbing a hand over his face. "Is everything all right?"

Splinter put a restraining hand on his son's muscular shoulder, preventing him from standing. "Yes, everything is fine. Forgive an old Rat for his moment of weakness."

Leonardo's face furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?"

The master sighed. "You are not children any longer. You are hardly even youths. You are young men, and you are elite ninja. But..." His ears flattened against his head as he allowed himself to voice his admission. "...I am afraid for you."

"We'll be all right, Sensei." Leonardo wasn't trying to patronize him or make empty promises. His voice was calm and steady, despite the uncertainty and strangeness of the circumstances.

"You should have been made aware of the full history of the Tribunal long before this," Splinter told him. "That was my poor judgment. My mistake." He forced himself to maintain eye contact with his son. "Did you not wonder how I knew where to find you?"

"I thought the Ancient One brought you."

"The Ancient One knows the fastest and safest way to this place, it is true. But I knew the general region, at least. I would have found you. I never told you that I had been here once before." He did not add, _"And so have you_." He _should_ tell Leonardo, but he did not want to. Not now. His sons could not afford to harbor any resentment against the Tribunal when they were at their mercy. Another lie of omission made out of love for his sons. It stayed on his tongue like a burning coal.

By the look in his eyes, Splinter could tell that Leonardo knew he was holding something back. But instead of hurt or suspicion, the Rat only saw quiet acceptance on the blue-banded face. Leonardo was the leader of his brothers – and as a result, his decisions often dictated what Splinter would do – but Splinter was his master. But more importantly, Splinter was his father, and that bond alone was all Leonardo needed to have faith in him.

Leonardo gave him an understanding look and reached out to take his father by the hand. "Sensei...We've always trusted you. That's not going to stop now. And if what the Ninja Tribunal says about the Shredder is true..." He tilted his head a little, waiting for Splinter's acknowledgment. Splinter dipped his gray head once in confirmation. Leonardo nodded determinedly. "...then we'll stay and see what they have to teach us. We were the only ones who could stand up to the Utrom Shredder. We may be the only ones who can fight this demon Shredder." His mouth curved in a determined smile. "And if we need to break out of here, we will. We've never been big on letting ourselves get pushed around...and we've gotten out of tight spots before."

Splinter looked down at their joined hands. There had been a time when the three small fingers only just fit spread against the palm of his hand. Now, the leaf-green hand of his son engulfed his own clawed paw. "That you have," he said softly. He gave his son a slight smile, hoping the worry he felt would not show through. "I believe the Tribunal will find that they have caught a tiger by the tail through their decision to abduct you." Leonardo chuckled.

Splinter squeezed the strong hand once more, then gently extracted himself from his son's grasp. "I did not mean to wake you," he said. "You should sleep. Your time here will not be easy and you will need your rest."

"Good night, Sensei."

"Good night, Leonardo." Splinter retreated to his bed, sharp ears listening as Leonardo's breathing gradually slowed and deepened. Despite the warm blanket covering his body, the master could not suppress a shiver. He was weary from his journey but he did not want to sleep. The nightmare still haunted him. He had had nightmares about losing his sons before – not surprising, considering the life his family had led – but this one felt different. It had felt _real,_ more real even than the vision created by the Tribunal. He had shivered from the chill in the air, smelled the smoke and blood...and he had felt the ripping pain in his heart as his sons were slain before his eyes.

He understood why Donatello had been so shaken.

Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes, sinking not toward sleep but towards meditation. Instead of focusing on his breathing or quieting his mind, though, he focused his thoughts on memories from long ago. Warm and bright, they surrounded his thoughts, and as he drifted off to sleep, the laughter of his young children filled his mind.

It was almost enough to silence the drumming of flaming hooves.


	4. Faithful

_We're about halfway through the series now. Thank you so much to everyone who has been reading along so far, and thanks to all of you who have left comments! I'm glad you're enjoying this! Song lyrics are from "Some Nights" by Fun._

* * *

**Well, some nights I wish that this all would end  
****'Cause I could use some friends for a change  
****And some nights I'm scared you'll forget me again  
****Some nights I always win**

Faithful

It wasn't hard to spot the surveillance van. Five years ago, she might not have noticed it, but now it was almost childishly easy. They used a different vehicle every day or so and they parked it in different places, but she could still pick it out after a minute or two. April was torn between feeling smugly amused at the Foot's failure to deceive her and achingly lonely at the futility of the surveillance. Karai was watching for the Turtles to show up but there was no guarantee they would ever be back again.

No. She refused to believe that.

That was why she was going to the lair. She made sure to run a few errands first to make sure she wasn't being followed, then turned her steps toward her friends' home. Splinter had locked up tightly when he'd left – Donatello had made sure his technology-wary Sensei knew how to set the security system – but April also knew how to get past it. She pushed the door open, set down the bags she was carrying, and stepped into the darkened room.

Two months of silence had turned the homelike den into a chilly, dusty, echoing chamber. Her nose wrinkled against the musty smell of damp concrete. Thankfully, the lights were still working. She stood in the center of the living area with her hands on her hips, looking around. Although the lair was usually fairly neat, the abrupt departure of its inhabitants had left little swirls of chaos behind.

Nintendo controllers were tangled together in front of the television, and a couple sofa cushions were still on the floor. Leo's room was spotless, but his well-read copy of _A Tale of Two Cities_ was lying open on the bed. The blanket and pillow still held a slight indent where he had been stretched out reading on top of the covers. April made her way to where Mike slept, folding the blanket bunched at the foot of his bed and straightening the haphazard pile of sketch paper on his desk. The thick paper was covered in both in charcoal and a riot of colored marker and pencil. Raph's room wasn't exactly messy but everything felt just slightly out of place, except for his weapons. Shuriken, sai, and a few short blades were mounted in rigidly straight rows on the wall. The gleaming metal had started to look dull beneath a thin coating of dust.

She avoided Don's room, veering instead to Splinter's quarters. She wished she hadn't. Usually warm but undeniably spartan, the room had been nearly completely emptied of its scant furnishings. No sign of the wise old Rat remained. Splinter had also emptied the kitchen of all perishables and removed the garbage, but he had neglected to dispose of the empty Ben and Jerry's carton that someone (probably Raph) had left on the counter. That oversight alone told April just how distracted by worry Splinter had been. She shivered, wondering not for the first time what sinister person or power had been able to overwhelm her friends so completely.

She took a deep breath and whispered to herself, "Okay." She had to go in Donny's room sometime. The bed was neatly made but the walls were lined with shelves weighed down with mechanical components and dismantled computers. The haphazard collection was arranged in a way that made sense only to his well-ordered mind. His laptop occupied the only place on his desk that wasn't covered with notebooks and sketches of the latest transportation vehicle he was designing.

Two chairs sat in front of his desk. April had been surprised and pleased when Don had presented her with her own chair. _"You're here so much I figured you could use one." _April lowered herself into the taller chair – the one Don usually used – and sat back, letting her eyes wander around the too-familiar room. The foam cushion felt odd against her back, compressed by his shell into a smooth curve that didn't fit against her spine. Her eyes swam with sudden hot tears that blurred the shadows and cobwebs into a blank gray wall, and she took short, shallow breaths to ease the hollow pain of loneliness. Aside from Casey, Don was her best friend. Each of the four brothers held a unique place in her heart and she loved them all dearly, but Don was the one with whom she had felt that instant -_click_- of friendship.

Almost as soon as the Turtles had included her in their little family, she had realized that theirs wasn't an easy life. It wasn't a safe life. Danger and uncertainty had ever been hovering over their strong shoulders. But they'd just shrugged it off, laughed it off, fought it off...and despite all the close calls and near misses, April realized that deep down, she'd never really believed they would be beaten.

She'd never been prepared to lose them.

"Oh, snap out of it, April!" she scolded abruptly. She took a deep breath, brushed away her tears, and rose to her feet. And then she got to work. She unpacked the bags of cleaning supplies that she'd brought with her, stripped sheets from beds, threw away the Ben and Jerry's carton, and straightened the sofa cushions. She swept and dusted and scrubbed.

She came back every two weeks, waiting for her family to come home.


	5. The Boys are Back in Town

_Song lyrics are by Thin Lizzy. Because I couldn't resist. _:D

* * *

**Guess who just got back today?  
****Them wild-eyed boys who have been away...**

**...The drink will flow and blood will spill  
****And if the boys wanna fight, you'd better let 'em**

The Boys are Back in Town

Something in the atmosphere had shifted. The rushing of the wind was occasionally audible in April's apartment when sporadic breezes dove between the tall skyscrapers; the bursts of air would break up into playful zephyrs that twirled dry leaves and scraps of discarded paper in dizzying circles. But tonight the wind was steady and strong, and it sounded as if the sky was roaring. Tonight it seemed as if the clouds had aligned with the streets, sending aggressive gusts chasing each other through the night. The traffic lights bobbed uneasily above the empty streets.

April couldn't suppress a shiver as the old building creaked around her, glad for Klunk's reassuring warmth curled against her side. Her copy of _Jane Eyre_ was heavy on her lap. The wind outside only heightened the chills running down her spine as Jane crept through the dark hallways of Thornfield, following the creaking footsteps and demonic laughter until she came upon Rochester's room and found him lying unconscious in his bed, nearly consumed by fire.

"_Mew!"_

April yelped and dropped the book, clutching at her heart as Klunk abruptly awoke and bounced up, spinning in circles on the couch. "You stupid cat!" she gasped, half amused, half irritated at how badly she'd been startled. Klunk ignored her. He was standing with his paws on the arm of the couch, staring fixedly at the front door. The tip of his tail twitched a few times, then he crossed the room at a single bound and lifted one white-socked paw to bat at the door.

April had just enough time to realize that there shouldn't be anyone in the hallway this time of night before the door quivered under a very quiet knock. The spooky silence of the building made her half afraid of who – or what – could be outside...but she had never seen Klunk run to the door like that, not even when Casey, his favorite human climbing tree, came over. Her heart gave a sudden wild, hopeful leap, but she still crossed the room cautiously to look out the peep hole. She caught the barest flash of blue and green before unlocking the dead bolt with shaking hands and throwing the door wide.

"Leo!" She threw her arms around him the moment he stepped inside. Joy and relief welled up so suddenly in her heart that she wasn't sure if she was about to laugh or burst into tears. "I can't believe you're home!"

"It's good to see you," he said warmly, holding her briefly before handing her off to an impatient Michelangelo.

Mike hugged her against his plastron and spun her in a circle, giving her a noisy smooch on the cheek as he set her down. "Did you miss us?" he asked brightly.

"Like you wouldn't believe!" she answered, rubbing her knuckles against the top of his head. Mikey grinned and stepped back, falling to his knees with his arms opened wide as an enthusiastic ball of orange fur launched itself into his arms. "Klunkatron 3000!"

"Glad to see you held down the fort," Raph said, giving her a rough, one-armed side-hug. "It was all we could do to keep Mikey from writing love letters to that furball."

"What, he wanted to write to Klunk and not to me?" she asked, only half-feigning her indignation.

"We wanted to write," Don said earnestly as he hugged her. "Really, we did. But there was no way to contact you. I know how worried you must have been."

"'Worried' does not even _begin_ to cover it, Mister," she said, squeezing him tightly. "I didn't even know if I'd see you again! You guys owe me one heck of an explanation."

"All will be explained," Splinter said. When April looked around to find him, she took an involuntary step back when her eyes landed not on the aged Rat, but the round little human who had accompanied him the night he went in search of his sons. The familiar touch of a clawed hand on her arm pulled her attention away, though, and she knelt willingly as Splinter pulled her into a warm embrace. "I am glad to see you again," he said softly. His gentle tone nearly brought her long-repressed tears to the surface, but she took a deep breath and swallowed them back, determined to be happy after her adopted family's long absence.

"Miss O'Neil," Splinter said formally, holding her hand as she climbed to her feet. "I would like to introduce the master of my Master Yoshi, the Ancient One."

The little man grinned up at her when he saw her eyes widen in recognition. "Ah, I see you have heard of me."

Whether it was wishful thinking or dumb luck, April had a couple frozen pizzas on hand. By the time they had been baked, devoured, and followed with the last of the ice cream in her freezer, the Turtles had told her about the Ninja Tribunal, about their training period in Japan, and about Tora, Faraji, Adam, and Joi. They told her about the battle – the one they had ultimately lost – with the Foot Mystics. And they told her about the imminent return of the true Shredder.

She sat quietly between Leo and Don on the couch after they had finished, staring down at her hands folded in her lap. The only sound was the affectionate thrumming from Klunk's chest as he sat nestled in Mike's lap, gently kneading his white paws against his favorite Turtle's knee pad.

April took slow, careful breaths. Her face was calm but her blood pulsed heavily through her veins as she tried to sort out her thoughts. Her feelings for the Tribunal vacillated between awe and anger. The mysterious dragon warriors intrigued her but she was furious that they hadn't given the Turtles a choice. She knew (and she was willing to bet the Tribunal had known) that they would have agreed to help had they been asked. The way they had been ambushed by the tree-beings and taken by force had been cruel. The too-familiar name of the Shredder resurrected a particular cold fear that she'd thought was gone for good. And she was filled with a mixture of sympathy and sorrow for the Turtles at the loss of their comrades, and sisterly pride for them at what they had accomplished.

She settled for focusing on the most important question. "What do we do now?"

"We get ready," Leo answered. "As best as we can. We'll gather allies so we can fight when the time comes. And we'll continue training. There's a lot of power in these weapons that we haven't tapped into yet."

"Those medallions really make that much of a difference?" she asked.

"I'll say!" Mike chimed in enthusiastically. "You should see how fast I can go! It's a bigger rush than skateboarding in the subway!"

"It magnifies our life energy," Don explained. "When that happens, we're stronger and faster. And it connects us with our weapons to amplify their effects."

"May I?" April asked, gesturing to the circle of gold around his neck. He didn't take it off, but leaned forward a little so she could reach it. She extended her hand and lifted the medallion from where it hung against his chest. The weight and heat of it surprised her. While the Turtles' skin was warm, their shells were cool to the touch. The metal shouldn't have picked up his body heat resting on his plastron, but it warmed her hand all the same. Though Don didn't seem bothered by wearing the pendant, the words "life energy" had given her pause. The medallions might use their life energy to amplify their power, but how did it connect with their spirits in the first place? Usually she was fascinated by the unknown, but this mystery made her uneasy. The red jewel in the center glimmered at her like fresh blood. She let it fall, suppressing a shudder. "How long do we have?"

Raph gave a one-shouldered shrug. "Days, weeks, hours. We'll know when we know. But it doesn't matter. We'll be ready for him." Coming from anyone else, it would have sounded like careless bluster. But not from Raphael. His words were directed at her, but when she looked over at him she saw that his gaze was resting on Leonardo's face. The unquestioning faith in his eyes warmed something in her chest and the little gnawing fears at the back of her mind were silenced.

She took a deep breath, the first in months that didn't make her heart ache. "Sounds like we've got a lot to do."

"Oh, _**'we'**_ do, huh?" Mike said with a grin.

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, guys. You know I'm in."

Leo smiled. "Yeah, we know. By the way..." He cleared his throat and nudged her with his shoulder. "We stopped by the Lair before we came over."

"Oh, you did?" April said nonchalantly.

"Yes, we did." His warm golden-brown eyes were fixed keenly on her face. "Funny thing...it's been empty for eight months, but you'd never know. No dust anywhere. Clean sheets. There was even a little food in the kitchen that hadn't gone bad."

April blushed, feeling every eye in the room fixed on her face. "Imagine that."

He just watched her for a moment, then slowly leaned forward to rest his forehead against hers. His eyes slid closed and he spoke very, very softly. "Thank you. For not giving up on us." April swallowed hard against a sudden wave of emotion and shut her eyes against the prickling warmth welling up. She teetered precariously close to bursting into tears, but then he bumped her nose playfully with his snout, and the sob caught in her throat escaped as a laugh.


	6. Better Than Frodo

_This chapter picks up at the very end of "New World Order, Part 2" and continues through the end of "Fathers and Sons". Song lyrics are from "Some Nights" by Fun._

* * *

**The other night, you wouldn't believe the dream I just had about you and me**

Better than Frodo

April knew the vibrations of the helicopter as well as she knew her own heartbeat. Now, both the chopper and her pulse were racing at frantic speed. Her eyes burned as she stared across the city, hardly blinking, watching the flashes of light and billows of smoke that had erupted on the roof of the Foot building. Again. As she waited within call to pickup the reptilian raiders that had gone charging through the front door. Again.

"_Didn't we just leave this party?"_ Han Solo's sarcastic line streaked through her brain. She rolled her eyes at herself. _Great, movie quotes in times of crisis. I'm turning into Mikey._

Splinter shifted anxiously in the co-pilot's seat next to her, bringing her focus immediately back to the here and now. From this distance, she couldn't pick out individual warriors. Unlike previous missions, Don had decided against maintaining contact via the Shell-cell headsets, so until he contacted her, she would have no way of knowing if they were all right.

She wondered if it was because he hadn't wanted for her and Splinter to be listening if he and his brothers were killed.

Her night-adapted eyes stung painfully as a sudden burst of golden light flared to life. The flame-like whorls began spinning atop the Foot building, growing in ever-widening sweeps. As she watched, the glow grew impossibly brighter and began to ascend above the city like a miniature sun rising. The night grew bright as day, throwing knife-edged black shadows across the city streets. She cast a frightened glance at Splinter. The Rat was leaning forward in his seat, face tense and drawn. The Ancient One stood in the space between the piloting chairs, lifted on his toes as if he were about to take flight.

"What's happening?" she asked anxiously. But Splinter just shook his head and did not answer.

The air gave a soundless shudder and the helicopter twisted alarmingly in the sky as a pounding wave of energy flooded past, but April gritted her teeth and held the aircraft steady. With startling abruptness, the light was gone, and four silhouettes – beautiful, sinuous, and deadly – could be seen hovering in the air above the city. Splinter gasped.

The Ancient One cried out in shock. "Splinter!"

April felt dread soaking into her bones. "Dragons," she forced out in dismay. "They have to fight dragons?"

"No!" the Ancient One barked impatiently. "They _are_ the dragons!"

"_What?"_

"It is true," Splinter ground out. "The dragons you see are my sons."

"Splinter, did you know?" the Ancient One asked.

The master shook his head, unable to tear his gaze away from his sons. "I knew Leonardo's avatar was a dragon," he replied, voice strained to breaking, "and although his brothers had not yet been able to manifest their avatars, I suspected that theirs could be dragons as well. But I did not realize that they could transform."

The dragons moved with savage grace and bursts of light. Even from so far away, April could tell that the battle had intensified. Her hands ached where they gripped the controls. The bizarre, half-hysterical thought of _They'll never fit inside the helicopter!_ flitted through her brain before her mind went completely blank, struggling to reconcile the winged beasts with the friends she knew.

There was a thunderous roar, a blinding flash of light, and then the top story of the Foot building was engulfed in furious billows of dark smoke. She couldn't see the dragons any longer.

Forty-five agonizing seconds crawled past.

Her Shell-cell chirped beside her and she gasped, not realizing that she'd been holding her breath. She snatched it up. "Donny?"

"_April? We're ready for pickup!"_

"On my way!" She could feel Splinter and the Ancient One watching her – the Rat, concerned about her, and the human dubious of her reaction to all this – but by now, she was beyond questions. She filed the dragons away in a different part of her brain to be addressed later – _much _later – and guided the helicopter in a swift, efficient loop over the buildings to alight on the cracked landing pad of the Foot tower.

"Hurry up guys," she said in a low voice, straining her eyes to see through the great gouts of smoke billowing from the wrecked tower. She allowed herself just one short sigh of relief as four familiar silhouettes materialized out of the darkness, but her breath caught in her throat when she saw the slender black shape cradled in Leonardo's arms. Karai looked dead, but the urgency in Leo's movements told April that the Foot clan leader wasn't gone yet. The helicopter shook as the four ninjas jumped aboard, Raph bringing up the rear.

"Let's move!" Raph ordered. "He's down, but he ain't gonna stay down!" As soon as his feet hit the deck, April closed the doors and initiated liftoff.

Karai's blood left glistening red streaks on Leo's plastron as he eased her limp, too-pale form to the deck. Don dug the first aid kit out and tossed it toward his brothers. Mike caught it. He retrieved a pair of bandage scissors and flipped them to Leo before pulling out a package of gauze. Leo didn't hesitate. He guided the scissors through the narrow gash the sword had left in the clinging black suit Karai wore under her battle armor and opened a wide hole in the fabric, peeling the blood-soaked material away from her abdomen. A jagged stab wound marred the smooth skin of her stomach.

"Aw, man – he ran her through," Mikey said grimly, sliding a bloody hand out from beneath her back.

"Just put pressure on it," Leo said shortly, taking the thick gauze pad his brother held out to him and flattening his hand against the freely bleeding wound. The snowy material was quickly dyed crimson, creating a jarring contrast with his leaf-colored skin. His face grew hard as he saw her belly beginning to swell. "She's got a pretty bad bleed," he said. "Lacerated spleen or liver, maybe. He missed the aorta or she'd be dead by now."

"Still not outside the realm of possibility, Bro." Mikey was dutifully pressing gauze against the exit wound in Karai's lower back, but there was no hope in his eyes.

"Saint Lawrence Hospital has a helo pad," April put in. "Should we take her there?" She didn't know how they'd explain their unannounced arrival, but they'd deal with that when the time came.

"No," Leo answered. "She won't make it."

Despite the fact that Karai was an enemy, April felt a pang of regret. "There's nothing we can do?"

"I didn't say that," came the reply. Leo moved Mikey's hands away. He wiped the worst of the blood from his left hand and rested it on Karai's forehead and splayed his right hand over the wound in her abdomen. "Raph, I need you to ground me."

Raphael stepped close behind Leo and put his hands heavily on his brother's shoulders. Before April could ask what was going on, the air inside the helicopter crackled and warm golden light pressed the night back as their medallions began to glow. The gold mingled with sky blue light as Leo's aura flared, painting brilliant streaks across his skin. Raph closed his eyes as scarlet ribbons wreathed his body. April saw their reflections bloom in the windshield in front of her like stationary red and blue flame.

There was a moment of tense silence, but then she heard the soft sound of surprise from Donatello and she risked a glance backward. Her eyes widened. The veins beneath Karai's skin were pulsing with soft blue and gold light.

Several long minutes passed. Mikey and Don watched in astonishment as the steady flow of blood slowed and stopped. The crackle and thrum of energy in the helicopter crested like a wave and broke, and the warm light vanished. Raphael crouched and caught Leo in one smooth motion as the blue-masked Turtle listed to the side.

"Leo?" Mikey asked, brow furrowing in concern.

"He's okay," Raph grunted, clapping his brother firmly on the shoulder as he helped right him.

Don bent over Karai. "I don't believe it," he said dazedly. The stab wounds had sealed over, leaving livid red scars behind.

April guided the helicopter to a swift landing near the lair, taking a deep, relieved breath as the cavernous hanger closed with a bass rumble. She tore open the buckles on her flight harness and hurried to kneel next to the injured woman – but her eyes were on her four adopted brothers. "Okay, what just happened?" she asked breathlessly.

"Uh, do you mean with us on the Foot building or just now with Leo?" Mikey asked. "Because I don't think we know how to explain either."

"We can discuss everything later," Splinter said. "Right now, we must tend to Karai. Her most serious injuries have been tended to..." He rested a hand on Leonardo's shoulder. "...but she is not out of danger yet. And neither are we."

She nodded. "Okay. Let's take her to my place. You can't keep her here at the lair. Even if she never sees the outside of this place, she could figure out where you are." Seeing Don's doubtful look, she rolled her eyes. "She already _knows_ where I live, guys."

"Miss O'Neil is correct," Splinter said.

Leo gathered Karai's body in his arms once more. "Let's move."

The trip from the lair to April's home was mercifully uneventful. The Turtles were on edge, eyes narrowed, scanning the alarmingly empty streets for the Shredder or his minions. April could feel the hair rising on the back of her neck as the strange energy from their medallions heated the inside of the vehicle. Their vigilance made the air literally thrum with intensity, but there was no sign of the ancient demon or the mystics.

At April's direction, Leo carried the unconscious Karai into the bedroom and nudged the door closed with his heel. He waited while April stripped the sheets from her bed and set down a layer of towels before putting a fresh sheet on top, then carefully laid his burden down.

April eyed Karai uncertainly, but pushed her sleeves up and stepped forward. "Okay, I guess you can leave now."

He tilted his head. "Leave?"

She felt her cheeks flush a little. "Yeah, so I can clean her up?"

"It'll be a lot easier for you if I help," he pointed out. "Besides, I don't want you in here alone with her. She's weak, but I don't know what she'd do if she woke up."

"Point made."

April had seen Leo patch up his brothers before, so she knew he could be very capable and gentle when it came to cleaning and dressing wounds, but it was surreal to see him exhibit the same care and gentleness with Karai. Aside from washing away the blood and bandaging some superficial wounds, however, there was surprisingly little for them to do. Whatever Leonardo had done on board the helicopter had healed much of the visible damage, but she had been badly beaten and had lost a great deal of blood. Now they could only wait to see if Karai would fight her way back.

April pulled out one of her favorite pajama tops, a long, loose t-shirt that had been worn so often that the pistachio-colored fabric had turned stretchy and soft. She eased the shirt over Karai's black bodysuit with Leo's help, then slipped her hands under the t-shirt to cut away the torn and bloody fabric with the bandage scissors. She wrinkled her nose and tossed the ruined suit in the corner before glancing back up at her helper. Even though Karai's body was covered, he had still turned his face discreetly to the side, a gesture that made the corners of her mouth lift a little. "What did you and Raph do on the helicopter?"

"I used the medallion to channel my life energy into her. I was hoping it would help her body start healing itself. Raph was there to make sure I didn't get lost in the astral plane. Karai was so close to death that I didn't want to...well, get caught in her wake, for lack of a better term, and get pulled along with her."

Icy fingers ran down her spine, but she kept her expression calm. "How did you know it would work?"

"I wasn't sure it would," he confessed, carefully lifting Karai's torso so April could sponge the blood from her back. "But she was dying, and I knew it couldn't hurt."

"Well, I hope she appreciates what you've done for her."

"I don't expect anything from her," Leo replied. "She would expect something from _me_, if our situations were reversed. But I'm not like her." Actually, April thought sourly, if the situations were reversed Leo would probably get his throat slit...but that was beside the point. And Leonardo was still talking. "I hope she'll help us," he was saying, "but I'm not going to hold this over her head as if she owes me. She'll be free to make her own decision."

April smirked at him. "A decision that you're betting will be grounded in her overdeveloped sense of honor?"

His expression was a study in neutrality, but she could see the sly glint in his eyes. "Know your enemy."

She pulled a wry face. "Okay, Sun Tzu Junior. Are we done here?"

He nodded. "I think so. Let's take her out to your couch. We need to be together now and I don't want her by herself." She read the dual undercurrent in his voice: he wanted to keep his enemy in sight, but if she were to die, he didn't want her to die alone.

A distant rumble of thunder shook the air as he picked Karai up once more and brought her to the main room and laid her out on the sofa. He ducked into the bathroom to wash the last of Karai's blood from his hands and plastron. When he emerged, Raphael beckoned to him with a jerk of his chin from his self-appointed sentinel post by the window. The blue-masked Turtle crossed the room to stand by the other window, looking grimly down at the empty street. Lightning flared whitely as a second thunderclap reverberated among the thickly gathering clouds.

If April had been expecting a heated strategy session from the Turtles, Splinter, and the mysterious Ancient One once Karai had been tended to, she was mistaken. Leo started to ask the masters for advice, but Splinter diverted the conversation into a tale of when the four Turtles had thwarted the resurrection of the Shredder years before when they had been merely children.

April listened in mute wonder. She wasn't sure what shocked her more – that the Turtles had accomplished such a feat or the fact that they didn't seem to remember it. They were listening with the same rapt astonishment as she. When the tale ended, though, she knew why. Her expression darkened when she heard how the Ninja Tribunal had taken it upon themselves to erase the memory from the boys' minds. Although the brothers were surprised and a little unnerved by the news, it only took them a moment to take this new development in stride the way they always did.

Mikey was the first to speak. "Well, I'd say this qualifies as one of the more bizarre things I've learned about myself."

Raph smirked. April could see the familiar sharp gleam in his eyes that showed a snide remark was brewing, but Don spoke before his brother had a chance.

"It might explain a few things, though," he said thoughtfully. "Leo, do you remember when you went through that short stage of bad dreams when we were little? You kept dreaming about a burning skeleton."

"I believe you are right, Donatello," Splinter said. "Even though you did not retain any memory of our time in Japan, of the four of you, Leonardo has always been the most perceptive of the astral plane. It does not surprise me that some echo remained imprinted on his mind." The Rat had not verbalized his opinion on the action of the Tribunal one way or another, but April had learned to recognize the telltale bristling of his whiskers that showed his displeasure. He clearly had not appreciated the uninvited invasion of his sons' minds.

The hour grew late, and April insisted that Splinter and the Ancient One use her room. When the masters finally withdrew – whether to rest or meditate – April was left sitting with the Turtles in a loose circle on her living room floor. The storm outside hadn't let up, and the lights flickered alarmingly as lightning split the sky. A muffled groan from the couch made them all swivel to look, but Karai remained motionless.

"Why was Splinter so adamant on saving her?" April asked. While she felt sorry for the wounded kunoichi, she had not forgiven her for her service to the Shredder, nor for her blood feud with the Hamato clan. Although April was decidedly the least dangerous person in the room, she felt as protective of the Turtles as a lioness for her cubs.

Leo was still staring at Karai's motionless form. "He feels that she still has some part to play in all this," he answered quietly.

April couldn't help it. A giggle bubbled up from her stomach and she clapped both hands over her mouth to squelch it. Four pairs of masked eyes looked at her in confusion. "I'm sorry," she bleated, then, "I'm sorry," much more sedately. She took a deep breath. "It's just...never mind, it's not funny. This is a very serious situation." But her mouth still twitched.

Raph let out a long-suffering sigh, rolling his eyes to the ceiling. "Spill it, sister."

"You're going to think I'm the biggest nerd..."

"We already do," Mike said with a laugh. He hooked one arm around Donatello's neck and gave him an affectionate noogie. "She's in good company, right, Donny?" April grinned as Don elbowed Mikey hard in the gap between his plastron and carapace. Mikey "oof-ed" and let go.

"Okay, well...you know that part in _Lord of the Rings_ where Frodo is talking to Gandalf about Gollum? And Frodo says it's a pity that Bilbo didn't kill him when he had the chance?" She started laughing again. Leo facepalmed and Don groaned, but she kept going, forcing the words out between giggles. "And then Gandalf says he thinks Gollum still has a part to play?" Raph's baritone chuckle was all but drowned out by Michelangelo's exuberant laughter.

April wiped tears from her eyes, trying to calm down. "I told you it wasn't funny!" she squeaked breathlessly. By now, even Leonardo was laughing, even if he was shaking his head.

"So – so this means that Master Splinter is Gandalf?" Mikey said, getting into the analogy.

"I guess that makes you Frodo," Don said to Leo with a grin. "Who's Sam?"

"Raph." Leo's eyes were sparkling with merriment, but the look he gave his red-masked brother was anything but teasing.

"Who does that make me?" Mikey asked.

"You, my friend, are Pippin," April said, punctuating her statement by pointing decisively at him. "And Don is Meriadoc."

"This means, of course," Donny said with his most academic air, "That the Ancient One is Tom Bombadil." Raph, who had started chuckling again at Mikey's Hobbit designation, completely lost it. His rarely heard, unrestrained laughter came tumbling out of his chest like unexpected sunshine bursting from a storm cloud.

Leo was still smiling, but a thoughtful look was stealing across his face. "You know, April," he said quietly, "Frodo failed in his quest. He couldn't destroy the Ring. Middle-earth was only saved through a bizarre twist of fate."

April sobered, studying his iridescent ochre eyes carefully. His gaze was steady, confident, and fiercely resolute. He wasn't sure how they were going to defeat the Shredder, but she could tell that he was determined to win. He just didn't know what the cost would be. "But Frodo still made it through," she said with an understanding smile.

He nodded. "He did. Although it was mostly because of Sam." He spoke just loud enough so Raph could hear. Raph wasn't looking at them – his attention appeared to be on Mike and Don, who were debating whether April was Galadriel or Éowyn or a combination of both – but April could tell by the slight cant of his head that his focus was on Leo.

She gave him a fond look. "Yes, because of Sam. And some Eagles. But who needs Eagles when you have Dragons?" He chuckled. She tilted her head, studying him. "Actually, you're better than Frodo. You're Aragorn."

"With the katanas that were broken and re-forged?" he asked, mouth quirking in amusement.

April smiled. Leo was an even bigger Tolkien geek than she was, and she'd known he'd get the reference. "Something like that." She leaned forward then, resting her hand on his forearm, all traces of silliness gone. "That's why you're going to win," she said softly, putting every ounce of her faith in him into her words. "You've done the impossible a dozen times over, and you'll do it again. Aragorn went to the gates of Mordor and survived. And so will you."

Leo didn't answer. He just gave her a grateful little smile, wrapped a strong, brotherly arm around her shoulders, and kissed the top of her head.

**Man, you wouldn't believe the most amazing things  
****That can come from some terrible nights**

* * *

_Just a little note: the last bit with April and the Turtles was actually the first scene I wrote for this series. I finished it a couple months ago, but it was only during my final edit yesterday that I realized what I'd done by drawing the parallel between Raph and Sam. I swear on The Precious, that was not on purpose. I meant to highlight the loyalty and close friendship between Leo and Raph...I wasn't even thinking about the 2k12 series. I almost think this is more funny than making Karai into Gollum. _:D _Thank you so much for reading! There's one more chapter on the way._


	7. Carry On

_This is it, guys! Last chapter! Huge thanks to everyone who has followed along or taken the time to leave comments! _

_This picks up at the end of "Enter the Dragons: Part 2", immediately after Yoshi kills the Shredder and disappears. It's tweaked just a wee bit, so it doesn't follow the end of the episode verbatim. It seemed like a bit of a cop-out to me that Tora, Faraji, Adam, and Joi were suddenly alive at the end when they had been dead a few minutes before and they didn't get resurrected by their medallions like the Turtles did. (Apparently they were only __**mostly**__ dead?) If it were up to me I would have left them dead, even though I liked them...but I don't write non-canon character deaths, so I needed some sort of explanation for why they were alive. I also needed a bit more resolution to the story arc._

_Song lyrics are from "Carry On", by Fun. Because Nate Ruess could sing "I'm a Little Teapot" and I would be enthralled. _:) _Also, I make no claims to own "The Princess Bride". I didn't intend to make this chapter so long, but it didn't feel right breaking it up. Enjoy!_

* * *

Carry On

**And it's nice to know  
****When I was left for dead  
****I was found and now I don't roam these streets  
****I am not the ghost you want of me**

The energy suspending the Turtles in midair abruptly disappeared. They hit the ground hard enough to take their breath away, and for a moment they just lay still, panting on the flame-blackened earth. Splinter rushed to his sons and bent over Donatello, who was lying nearest. "My son, are you hurt?" He reached out his hand but stopped when he saw the scorch marks on the purple-banded Turtle's right side, spreading down shoulder, arm, and leg.

Donatello sat up slowly, rubbing grit and ash from his eyes. "No. No, I'm fine." He winced a little as the movement tugged at burned flesh, but although the wounds were painful they were not serious. The nearly-indestructible scales of his dragon form had taken the brunt of the demon Shredder's fiery breath, leaving injuries comparable to a severe sunburn and the memory of the volcanic heat behind. It was unlikely that the burns would even scar, a fact for which Splinter was grateful. His sons had far too many scars already.

Don set his hand on Raphael's shoulder and gave his brother a gentle shake. "Hey, you with us?"

"Quit shaking me, Donny. My everything hurts," Raph growled. Despite his protest, though, he sat up by himself.

Leonardo hooked his arm around Mikey's biceps, hauling his little brother upright. He tightened his grip when the other Turtle swayed and pressed a hand to his head, squeezing his eyes shut. "Mikey, what's wrong?"

"What?" Mike asked dazedly, blinking at Leo in confusion.

"Michelangelo, are you all right?" Splinter asked, crouching down to be in his son's line of vision.

"Uh...yeah. I'm okay," he said shakily. "Really, I'm fine," he repeated more steadily, seeing that his father wasn't convinced. "I've just got this ringing in my ears."

Splinter quickly looked over the rest of his sons. Leonardo had burns like Donatello's along his left arm. Raphael had no obvious visible injury and would only admit that he was "cold" but wouldn't elaborate. The way Michelangelo kept rubbing his temples concerned Splinter, but his worry eased a little at his youngest son's reaction when he finally took a good look at the battlefield.

"Wow," he gasped, the beginning of his enthusiastic grin on his face, "That was beyond amazing! We totally kicked shell, Bros!"

"You are _sure _you are all right?" Splinter asked again, hands clenched tightly around his walking stick.

"We're all right, Sensei," Don assured him, carefully climbing to his feet. He lifted his uninjured left arm, giving Splinter space to come close to his side and wrap wiry arms around his dusty shell.

A sudden startled yelp from Raphael made them all jump. Raph was staring down at his hands, watching threadlike golden bolts of energy arc between his fingers like lightning. "Leo, what's going on?"

"Uh..." Leo looked down at his own hands as tendrils of light wreathed around his forearms and wrists in short, flickering bursts. "I don't know."

"I think it's residual energy from the medallions and from our transformation," Don said slowly, "but I don't know why it's manifesting this way."

"Coooool," Mikey drawled, rainbowing a thread of light back and forth between his palms.

Splinter's gaze grew serious and sad. "My sons, I believe I know why this life energy is still present. Come with me." Mikey, Raph, and Leo all stood to follow their Sensei. The instant Leonardo put weight on his left leg, a shooting, icy pain lanced from his heel to his knee. He stumbled, but since he was bringing up the rear, no one noticed. Pausing for a moment to shake away the unpleasant tingling, he hurried to catch up with his family.

Splinter led them away from the open field where they had battled the Shredder and into a grove of trees. The mystical forest the Shredder had created was gone, but they were in the center of a small park, a good distance away from the Foot building and the main battle. They made their way through a thicket and emerged into a small clearing before the four Turtles halted in dismay. The bodies of Tora, Faraji, Joi, and Adam lay on the ground in broken heaps. A distressed sound escaped Mike's throat as he knelt by Tora's side.

"They're really gone this time," Don said softly when he tried and failed to find Adam's pulse.

Raph stood beside Joi's body, fists clenched by his side as he looked down at her white face and clouded eyes. "It's not fair," he growled. "Not after everything we've been through. It can't end like this."

"It won't," Leo said suddenly. "Master Splinter – you were right. This is why the energy from the medallions is still manifesting, isn't it?"

The Rat nodded. "I believe so, Leonardo. It may be that our friends are not truly dead...merely lost in the astral plane. The energy from the Shredder is mysterious and, yes, deadly...but these warriors are acolytes just as you were. They are still wearing their medallions. I believe you may be able to call their spirits home."

Mikey lifted his head, blue eyes bright with hope. "Is he right, Leo? Can we do that?"

"I think so." He looked at each of his brothers. "Do you remember what I did on the helicopter with Karai? Do you think you can do that?" One by one, the Turtles nodded. There was no further need for explanation. While they had been Dragons, they had been incapable of speech, but their minds had been one. Each brother saw the others' thoughts – strengths were shared, weaknesses compensated for, and they had seen both past and present. They were able to reach into the vault of their memories and see what Leonardo had done.

Mike reached out and placed his hands on Tora's temples, closing his eyes and willing his life energy forward. For the last time, orange bands illuminated his skin. The headache that had been creeping across his forehead intensified, pulsing with his heartbeat, and he flinched but didn't stop. Tora's medallion began to thrum and glow. The gold pendant abruptly shattered like glass and Mikey fell back as sudden blinding white pain streaked behind his eyes. Tora's chest lifted with a sharp intake of air and he sat up with a jerk, coughing raggedly.

"Mikey-san!" he ground out, seeing his friend struggling to sit up. "What has happened?"

"We won, Dude," Mike said, pressing a hand to his head. The pain had made his eyes water and he blinked a few times to clear his vision. His ears were ringing again and it felt as if an icicle had been jammed into his stomach, but the sensation was slowly fading.

Tora's habitually stern expression deepened further as he saw Mikey's distress. "You are injured."

"No, I...I think I'm okay." Michelangelo's heart gave a quick, uncertain beat as he watched his brothers help their friends stand up. None of _them_ seemed to be in pain. But the moment of doubt passed and he grabbed Tora by the hand to pull him to his feet. "You missed one shell of a battle, though! We turned into Dragons!"

The eastern sky began to blush with the first light of day. Faraji brushed the shards of the medallion from the folds of his clothing, watching the cracked red jewel tumble into the dust. He looked down into Leonardo's face. "I heard you calling me," he said in a low voice. "Thank you for bringing me back."

"I'm glad I could," Leo answered with a tired smile. The heavy scent of smoke lingered on the wind and a creeping chill still curled around his insides, but the promise of warmth of the rising sun kindled hope in his heart. He shifted on his feet, giving his left leg a subtle shake. The coldness sinking into his bones seemed to be settling in that leg, and he wasn't sure why.

"Yo, Fearless." Raph waved to him from where he and Don were helping an unsteady-looking Adam to his feet. "What's the plan?"

"We've got to get back to the Foot building," he answered. "Bishop and Hun are still running around over there and now that the battle is over, things could get ugly."

"You guys go ahead," Adam said, allowing Tora and Joi to replace Raphael and Donatello as his crutches. "My leg's not bad, and we'll catch up."

Leo's brow furrowed over his mask. "We shouldn't leave you."

"I will stay with them to guard them, Leonardo," Faraji said, lifting Gunshin in his hands. The weapon didn't have mystical power anymore, but the blade was no less deadly in the hands of the experienced fighter. "Go on. We will follow you."

Leo hesitated. He didn't like the idea of leaving his friends to wander through a war zone, even if the most pressing threat had been eliminated; then again, even without the additional training from the Tribunal, the four humans were more dangerous than anyone they were likely to meet, except perhaps for Bishop. But they knew where the government agent was, or at least where he was supposed to be.

"All right," he said finally. He pulled his battered but still-functional shell-cell out from his belt and handed it to Faraji. "Here. If you need anything, call. We'll see you soon. Speaking of phones..." He turned to look at his brother. "Donny, shouldn't you be making a call right about now?"

Don smiled.

**So I met up with some friends at the edge of the night...  
****And we talked and talked about how our parents will die  
****All our neighbors and wives  
****But I like to think I can cheat it all  
****To make up for all the times that I've been cheated on**

Things had gotten very quiet. The only sounds were the soft trickle of water and the gentle hissing of static from the monitors. The flickering electronic snow was hypnotic, and it was only when her eyes burned and blurred that April realized she'd been staring. She lifted her head from Casey's shoulder and rubbed her eyes.

He inclined his head to look down at her. "You okay?"

A humorless chuckle escaped her. "Yeah. Just forgot to blink, that's all."

His arm tightened around her shoulders. "The guys are gonna be okay, April. They've gotta be."

"I know."

But her heart was bounding uneasily. Interference from the Shredder's energy had finally shorted out the satellite feed. She had tried to recalibrate the monitors but nothing had worked. Casey had finally led her over to the couch and made her sit. She had curled against him on the soft blue cushions and listened to the pounding of artificial thunder as their friends – and temporary allies – fought for the fate of the world.

She had wanted to leave the lair to find them after they lost the satellites; better to go out fighting than simply wait for the end. But surprisingly, Casey had been the one to stop her. _"We've got to trust them,"_ he had said. _"They can do this, A. This is something we can't help them with. And whatever happens after, we'll deal with. Together."_

So they had waited.

The lair was some distance away from the epicenter of the battle, but they had still been able to hear it. Brick dust had tainted the air as the earth shook and rattled the old foundation of the abandoned building. But now it was quiet. One way or another, they knew it was over. Her fingers absently ran over the grooves in the back of her shell-cell. She desperately wanted to try to call, but years of experience as an ally of ninjas held her back. Silence was life, sound was death. She would wait.

Her phone rang.

She yelped.

Casey jumped.

She fumbled with the phone and nearly dropped it. "Donny?" A brilliant smile dawned on her face as she listened, and she started to laugh. "You are? You did? Oh, thank God!" She listened for a minute or two, swatting away Casey's hand as he tried to steal the phone. "Okay, sounds like a plan. Be careful, okay? We'll be waiting. Hurry home!" She hung up and threw her arms around Casey's neck. "They won! They're okay!"

Casey gave a whoop and bounced up from the couch, dragging her with him. He picked her up and twirled her around, kissing her soundly when he put her down. "Didn't I tell ya, Babe?"

"You told me." April hugged him tightly, too overwhelmed with relief to offer her token protest to the nickname, even though it had stopped bothering her years ago. "Don said they've got a few loose ends to wrap up. They're going to track down Bishop and Karai, if they're still alive, and figure out how to handle the cleanup. The sun's rising, so they can't stay up there for too long. They'll be home as soon as they can."

"Even after all they did tonight, they're still gonna hide? You'd think this would get them off the hook for bein' 'freaks'."

April shook her head, pulling back a bit so she could see his face but staying within the circle of his arms. "I don't think so. There would be a period of novelty when people were interested in them, but if the guys were to reveal themselves after this, there'd be an unavoidable association with Bishop. No matter what he did to help today, that man's bad news. I wouldn't put it past him to use his influence to make the Turtles and Splinter seem less than human so he could try to experiment on them again. The government already knows about Bishop's studies with mutation – it wouldn't be too hard for him to convince people that he created them. I don't think the government would recognize them as having basic rights as people or American citizens. It's better if the world doesn't know about them."

Casey looked troubled, but he nodded. "Guess you're right."

The smile she gave him was a little sad, but she couldn't keep the hope out of her voice as she said, "Come on. This place could do with a little straightening up before the guys get home, and I bet they'll be hungry. You want to start dusting or start cooking?"

"I'm not real great at either one."

"I know." She smirked and pulled away from him, pointing commandingly towards the storage closet. "Grab a Swiffer, Jones."

Despite Donatello's assurances that they would hurry home, it was over an hour before any Turtles appeared. April didn't hear them coming, of course...one minute, it was just her and Casey in the lair, then she turned around and nearly tripped over Raphael. A startled squeak escaped her, and three fingers clamped around her arm in a gentle but inescapable grip to keep her from falling.

"Easy there," he said with a smirk. "I thought Master Splinter had taught you the basics already...like staying on your feet?"

"Oh, knock it off, you little green troll," she shot back. "You did that on purpose." She paused for just a second to check for visible injuries before she hugged him. She felt the thrum of his deep chuckle through the unforgiving hardness of his shell. "Where's everyone else?"

"On their way. Donny took a little detour to check some of his perimeter sensors, and Sensei and Mikey are coming with Leo." He rolled his eyes. "Fearless hurt his leg but didn't let on until we were half a mile away."

"Is he okay?"

The faintest gleam of hesitation flickered through Raph's eyes, but he said, "Yeah, I think so. He can't walk on it too good right now but we can't find anything wrong with it. Where's Case?"

"We heard water running and he went to check to make sure there wasn't a burst pipe. It felt like there was an earthquake down here." April felt the beginnings of a frown tugging at the corners of her mouth at the news that Leo was hurt, but before she could inquire further, Don appeared in the doorway with Splinter close behind. Leo came in last, limping badly on his left leg as Michelangelo supported him.

"I thought you said you were all okay," April chided Don gently, smiling a little so he'd know she wasn't truly upset.

"I thought we were too," he answered tiredly. "Things just...kind of caught up to us, I guess."

The sound of familiar heavy footsteps echoed off the brick walls as Casey emerged from the back rooms. "Good news, April – no leaks. Guess that water we heard was just the...hey, the heroes are back!" he crowed, hurrying over to greet his friends, clapping Raphael on the shoulder in his customary rough manner. Raph grinned, but while he would ordinarily absorb the blow easily, he staggered under the weight of his friend's broad hand. "Whoa, hey!" Casey grabbed the ridge of Raphael's carapace to steady him. "You okay, pal?"

"I'm fine," came the automatic answer, but April felt her elation and relief dissolving into concern. Now that she really looked at the four Turtles, she could tell they were at the end of their endurance. Raphael was breathing faster than usual and his shoulders were hunched slightly as if he were trying to withdraw them into his shell. Leonardo's mask was darkened with sweat, and April could see patches of skin on both Leo and Don that looked like they had been burned. Then she realized that the blue-masked Turtle was leaning on his father now. When had she lost track of Mikey?

She darted a quick glance around and caught sight of him over on the couch. She wasn't surprised that the ninja had been able to unobtrusively hand his brother off to Splinter and slip away, but it wasn't like him. Her concern deepened when she realized she could see him visibly shaking even from across the room.

"Mikey?" She hurried to his side and placed her hand on his shoulder, brow furrowing in concern when she felt how cool and clammy his skin was. "Tell me what's wrong."

"I'm just...cold," he said through clenched teeth. His bunched muscles spasmed beneath her hand as another shudder ran through him. "And my head is killing me." He propped his elbows on his knees and rested his forehead in his hands. "It wasn't so bad at first...but it's been getting worse. I thought I was hungry before but now my stomach just hurts." He swallowed convulsively. "I think I'm gonna be sick."

"No you're not," April told him, gently but firmly. She automatically started to rub her hand in slow circles across his back but remembered he couldn't feel it through the thick armor of his shell, so she put her hand back on his shoulder instead. "Just breathe slowly." She lifted her head to look at Splinter. "What's wrong with them?"

"I do not know," he answered uneasily. He gave Leonardo a little tug and guided him over to sit next to Mikey on the couch before turning to look at his second son. "Raphael, you said earlier that you were cold. Is this still true?" When Raph grudgingly nodded, the Rat turned to Donatello. "And you as well?"

"Yes, Sensei."

"We didn't feel like this after we transformed into dragons before," Leo said, leaning back wearily against the cushions.

"We weren't dead before," Don said quietly. Everybody froze and turned to look at him. "Well...we _were _dead, weren't we?" he asked slowly. "Sensei?"

Splinter's ears pressed flat against his head. "Yes," he whispered.

Now _April_ felt cold. Her eyes met Casey's across the room. His feet shifted a little as he glanced at his friends, wanting to do something but unsure how he could help. Her hand tightened on Mikey's shoulder. "But...you're okay now, right?" she asked, hating that she couldn't keep the tight quiver out of her voice. "I mean...you're not going to..." she couldn't force herself to say _"die". _

Leo understood what she meant. "No," he assured her. If he felt any doubt, she couldn't hear it in his voice. "We're okay."

She looked at Splinter. The master still looked worried, but he nodded once. She took a deep breath, trying to ease the tightness in her chest, then shook out the folded blanket on the corner of the couch and draped it around Mikey's trembling shoulders. "Casey, could you get the blanket off of Mikey's bed?" she asked. "Leo's, too."

"Sure thing."

They kept busy after that. Splinter settled beside Leonardo on the couch to wash the soot and dirt away from the burns on his arm. Raphael disappeared to take a hot shower to try and get warm. Casey, realizing that nobody was in the mood for spaghetti, put away the food and set to work cleaning the kitchen. April coaxed Mike to take some pain medication for his head, then headed to the lab to look for Donatello. She found him seated on the edge of his cot, applying a thin layer of aloe to the burns on his right side.

"Need any help?"

He smiled at her. "No, I've got it. Thanks."

She pulled out her chair from its spot at his work bench and sat back, feeling drained. "I don't know why I'm so tired."

"I do. You haven't slept in...what, at least 36 hours?"

She huffed a laugh. "Must be. I forgot." She hesitated, then said, "Don, tell me everything I don't already know."

So he did. He told her about the battle with the Shredder – how they had been transported from the tower into a thick forest, how the cold air had wrapped around them like the hands of ghosts, and how the demon had struck them down, one by one. He told her how they had been brought back somehow using the power of the medallions, and how they had transformed into dragons again for the final battle.

"Then it gets a little fuzzy," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I remember a lot of light and feeling like I was floating outside of my shell, which doesn't make any sense...and I thought I saw Master Yoshi. Then there was this blast of fire and heat, and it was over."

"Did Master Splinter tell you what happened?"

"No, and we didn't have time to ask. Sensei took us back to the woods where we had first fought. That's when we found Adam and the others."

April listened in awe as he described how the four humans had been revived. "That's unbelievable. But, wait...where are your friends now? Didn't they come back with you?"

"They'll come by this evening," Don answered. "After they woke up in the ruins of the Monastery, they decided to come to New York and they got a couple hotel rooms when they arrived. They weren't sure if we'd even survived the battle with the Mystics, but they came here because they knew if we could be found anywhere, we'd be here. They were actually in town for two days before they ran into Leo, but they didn't know how to find us. Leo gave Faraji his shell-cell. He'll call when they're ready to come over and I'll activate the homing beacon."

"Are their medallions gone, too?"

"Yeah. They all shattered."

"I can't say I'm sorry," she said. "I don't mind telling you they gave me the creeps."

"Your instincts were probably right," Don admitted. "We needed to use them, and I won't deny that flying around as a dragon was a heck of a rush, but..." His brow ridges drew together as he glanced toward the main living area where Leo and Mike were. "Something's not right."

"Are you feeling any better?" April ventured.

He averted his eyes. "No."

April shifted uneasily in her chair, but before she could say anything else, Raphael's familiar bulk loomed in the doorway. "Don, you should probably get out here," he said shortly.

Despite his burns and the painful chill gripping his insides, Donatello sprang to his feet and hurried to follow Raphael, April close behind. Don's face darkened with worry as he approached the couch.

Michelangelo was curled in an impossibly small ball in the corner of the couch, still shivering uncontrollably despite the double layer of warm blankets bundled around him. Leo, also covered in a blanket, had scooted closer and wrapped his uninjured arm around Mikey's shoulders, but it hadn't helped. Mikey's head was tucked in the hollow of his brother's neck, involuntary tears of pain darkening the orange fabric of his mask.

"He's getting worse," Leo said hoarsely. Though he tried to hide it, April could hear his voice shaking from the cold as well.

"Your leg?" Don asked.

"It's bad," came the clipped answer. "Feels just like it did earlier when the Shredder – " He broke off suddenly, eyes snapping wide. "Sensei, the Shredder! Could it have anything to do with him?"

"But he's dead," Raph protested, voice sharp with worry and pain.

Splinter's eyes flashed like dark flint, but his touch was gentle as he moved Michelangelo's hands away from his face and laid a hand on the cold green forehead. The master stood very still, gaze growing distant as his nose and whiskers twitched, but only a handful of heartbeats passed before he recoiled, shaking his hand as if he had been stung.

"There is a very dark energy clinging to Michelangelo," he said grimly. "Leonardo as well." He crossed to where Raph and Don stood, resting his hand briefly on each of their plastrons, over their hearts. "I can feel it inside you as well, my sons, but not as strongly." His voice grew lower as he continued speaking, talking to himself more than his family. "The Shredder is dead, so it is not an active energy...more like a residue left behind...but..."

"The gauntlet!" Don suddenly exclaimed. He knelt in front of the couch to be in Michelangelo's line of sight. "Mikey, you shattered the gauntlet in your teeth, remember? And, Leo, you destroyed the helmet by crushing it with your foot." He looked at each of his brothers, expression brightening as the wheels of his mind started to turn. "It's like radiation poisoning. We were exposed to a 'radiation leak' – the Shredder's energy when we fought him – but even though he's gone, the damage is continuing."

"Donny, you're a genius," Leo said, sitting up straighter. He looked down at Mike, giving the blanket-covered shoulder a reassuring pat. "Come on, Mikey. We're going to fix this. Raph, come on over."

"What do you want us to do?" Raph asked.

Leo moved from the couch to the floor, somehow keeping his movements smooth while keeping his bad leg stretched in front of him and coaxing his little brother to move with him. "We're going to meditate."

Raph snorted. "Figures." But he joined his brothers seated in a circle on the floor.

Mikey was shaking his head. "I don't think I can, Leo," he said, voice brittle.

"Yes, you can," Leo said calmly. Now that he knew what to do, the leader in him was taking over, pushing aside his own pain so he could help his family. "I know your head hurts, but you can focus through it. Close your eyes. Breathe with me." He picked up Mikey's hand and laid it flat against his own plastron, taking long, gentle breaths, exaggerating the movement a little so his brother could feel his chest rising and falling. "In and out. That's it." He made eye contact briefly with Raph and Don, making sure they were with him before he shut his eyes. "Think back to how we focused our energies right before we transformed into Dragons," he said, voice low and soothing. "Go to that place."

April swallowed hard, taking comfort in the feeling of Casey's strong arm around her shoulders. She looked questioningly at Splinter, afraid to say anything. Splinter looked worried and she could see that he was unhappy at his inability to help, but the faintest glimmer of hope was beginning to shine in the depths of his dark eyes.

Before long, all four brothers were breathing gently in unison. It took Mike the longest to settle. April knew he had difficulty quieting his active mind on his best day, let alone when he was nearly incapacitated by a blinding headache. But he did it.

For a few minutes, utter silence blanketed the lair. April watched her four adopted brothers in concern, wishing there was something she could do, but trusting that Leo knew what he was doing. Then she saw it. As lacy and delicate as frost gathering on a windowpane, thin threads of light began to curl around the Turtles' arms, necks, and faces. Instead of colored light, though, this light was warm and white.

"I didn't know they could still do that," April whispered to Splinter.

"Nor did I," he replied in the same tone. A melancholy smile touched his mouth. "But my sons have never failed to surprise me."

The light spread, covering every inch of their bodies. As they watched, a toxic-looking green mist began rising from them as if it were seeping from their pores. Splinter tensed and his upper lip curled as the mist hovered above his sons, coalescing into a shape that resembled a dragon. The dragon bent and opened its mouth wide as if it would swallow the Turtles whole. But then the light intensified and there was a sensation of a cool, clean wind blowing through the lair, and the dragon disintegrated and blew away like dust. There was a final warm, brilliant flash of light, then it was gone.

April blinked against the after-image burned on her retinas, face tightening in worry as she saw the four Turtles lying sprawled loosely on the floor. Splinter was already moving. He bent over his sons, resting his hand on their chests and touching their faces. The anxious fist clenched around April's heart loosened when the Rat looked up. His face was weary, but the worry was gone. "They are warm," he said softly. "And they are merely sleeping now."

They couldn't carry the sleep-heavy Turtles and they didn't want to wake them. So April, Casey, and Splinter brought pillows and the rest of the blankets from the boys' beds and tucked them in right where they lay.

"They gonna be okay now?" Casey asked.

"I believe so." Splinter smiled and sighed, the tension in his compact, wiry frame draining away. "Thank you, April and Casey. For taking care of my sons." He smoothed the blanket over Donatello's shell. "They will sleep for some time. Perhaps it would be best if we did the same."

"We'll stick around if it's all right with you," April said. He nodded, then bent to lay his hand against Michelangelo's cheek one last time before withdrawing to his quarters.

Casey sighed heavily, staring down at the slumbering brothers. "So...another crazy-ass anecdote for the record books?"

"So it seems."

"What are you gonna tell your sister when she sees this on the news and calls to see if you're still alive? Again."

April laughed thinly, wrapping her arms around his neck and hiding her face against his shoulder. "You know what? I have no idea."

Casey sat on the couch with a pillow in his lap, gently stroking his rough hand over April's hair as she lay down. "You want a blanket?"

She snuggled closer, blinking drowsily as his warm arm settled around her shoulders. "No, I'm good." Sleep descended quickly. She wasn't sure how long it was before she opened her eyes again – with no windows in the lair, it was hard to gauge the passage of time. She could feel Casey breathing slowly behind her as he slept. When she heard someone murmuring in his sleep, she knew why she had awakened, and a fond smile touched her lips. The Turtles had teased her about her "maternal instinct" with regards to them before, and although she'd been a little embarrassed, she hadn't been able to deny it.

April closed her eyes again and let her arm drift off the edge of the couch, reaching carefully until her fingers brushed against the restless sleeper. Her fingers traced the outline of a soft mask and smooth forehead, and she let her light touch linger until the murmuring quieted. She heard the sound of someone settling more comfortably under his blanket, and then felt three broad fingers wrap warmly around her hand and squeeze gently before letting go.

She smiled and sank back beneath the dark veil of sleep.

* * *

**Though I've never been through hell like that  
****I've closed enough windows to know you can never look back**

Leonardo's sensei had called it "the mantle of the Shredder". It was a fitting way to describe it, Karai thought. Even now, days after the demon had been destroyed, she could remember the feeling of it clinging to her like cold snakeskin, making her shiver in her bed. It wasn't so bad now, after she had spent time in meditation. It galled her to admit it, but Leonardo had been right.

The first twelve hours after the battle had been terrible. She had withdrawn to a satellite base near the outskirts of the city with the intent of resting for a few days to allow her still-healing injures time to recover, but within a few hours she had been overwhelmed with paralyzing cold and a roaring headache. Phantom flames, green as poison, seemed to flicker at the edges of her vision. She had been unable to do anything except let a distressed Chaplin hold her hand, a degree of closeness that she would never have allowed under normal circumstances. And she wondered if she was dying.

Then Chaplin had told her they had received an email from the Turtles. From Leonardo – who had known or guessed or assumed that Karai was in trouble. And he told her how to heal herself. She had ordered Chaplin try to trace the IP address (which pinged around the globe and dead-ended somewhere in Kenya), but for the first time, she found that she didn't care that Leonardo was out of her grasp.

She had taken the name of the Shredder in honor of her father...and because she knew the Shredder was the one thing that Leonardo had ever feared. He had never backed down, never faltered in battle, but he had been afraid. She knew he had been afraid, and she had taken a savage pleasure in giving flesh to his nightmares. Even though he did not fear _her,_ she knew (or, rather, hoped) the sight of the razor-sharp armor and glowing red eyes would haunt him every time he faced her in combat. But it had not been long before she discovered that she had brazenly taken control of things that she did not fully understand.

Her skill in leading the Foot clan was unparalleled and unquestioned. Oroku Saki had left her in charge of the Japanese faction when he left for New York, and there had been no objections. But after Ch'rell had been defeated, she had been weighed and measured by the Utrom, found not to be a threat, and deposited back on Earth to wander where she would.

So casually dismissed.

Deep down, she suspected that the reason she had been let go was because Leonardo was in no shape to raise an objection. She had seen him at her father's mockery of a trial, watching with a stern, implacable frown on his face, but she knew him well enough to know that he was too lost in his thoughts and physical pain to lend much voice to the proceedings.

Karai had immediately returned to New York to take control of the Foot in Ch'rell's stead. Only then did she begin to suspect that she was in over her head. The Foot Mystics, who previously had been mere shadows at the edge of her awareness, began to press in on her, sinister and silent. She knew that the Heart of Tengu gave her power over them but she did not understand how or why. She began to have dreams that she did not understand, frightening dreams about dragons and a black abyss yawning open to swallow her whole.

She was proud, but she wasn't stupid. Deep down, she had begun to realize that calling herself the Shredder was more than a simple tribute to the one who raised her or an act of revenge. But she could not revoke her decision.

Leonardo's sensei was the one who helped her truly understand what sort of power she had invoked by embracing the name of the Shredder. It was not a power that she could control. It was a power that consumed.

And they needed her to channel it.

"_I don't pretend to understand it, Karai, but if you can help us fight the demon Shredder, you're __**going**__ to help us."_

In the end, she knew she didn't have a choice. She had willingly taken the mantle of the Shredder upon herself, and it was time to accept the consequences.

_She was strapping on her gauntlets when a shadow at the corner of her vision made her pause. Leonardo was standing in the doorway, arms folded casually across his chest, watching her with an expression she wasn't sure how to read._

"_Is there something you need?"_

_The ice in her voice didn't phase him. "Just making sure you were ready. Thank you for helping."_

"_I am not doing this for __**you**__," she sneered. She tightened the last buckle around her wrist and turned to face him, crossing her arms across her armored chest to mirror his pose. "Do you honestly think this is going to work? Contacting Hun and Agent Bishop?"_

"_It has to," he said simply. "We can't fight alone."_

"_How can you be so sure they'll agree to join you when they've spent half a decade trying to kill you?" she asked cuttingly._

"_They don't really have a choice. If they fight, we could win. If they don't, they'll die."_

_She scowled. "The same way that __**I**__ don't have a choice? Don't think I don't know what you are asking me to do. You wish me to be a vessel for this dark energy. Have you even considered what it might do to me?" _

"_You had a choice," he replied with infuriating patience. "But the decision was made long before today. You decided this yourself the moment you became the Shredder."_

_She knew he was right, but it only made her angrier. "You __**do**__ realize that this is all your doing?" she demanded. "If you had not stolen the Heart of Tengu, the Mystics would not have been freed and this demon could never have been resurrected! Why did you do it?" He flinched. It was an infinitesimal muscle twitch, but her keen eyes caught it, and she knew she had surprised him. _

_He hesitated, then sighed a little. "That's right. You couldn't have known." Even though it had been a year since the incident, she could still see the trace of desperation in his eyes as he said, "I did it to save my brother."_

_And he told her what had happened. She remembered the mutagen outbreak that had devastated the city, but she had not known that one of the Turtles had fallen victim to it. "I didn't know what the Heart of Tengu was," he finished. "All I knew was that Bishop told us he would save Donatello if we obtained it for him, and I didn't ask any questions. But you're right. Just because I didn't know doesn't mean I'm not partially responsible for what happened."_

_Her eyes narrowed. "And what if you __**had**__ known?" she pressed. "What would the noble Leonardo have done then? Would he have chosen his brother or the greater good?"_

_He didn't answer for a long moment. "My brothers," he finally admitted, voice low and hoarse. "Always my brothers."_

"_So in the end, you are no hero," she said, voice dripping with scorn. "The mighty Leonardo has a weakness." _

_His golden-brown eyes blazed at her. "No. My brothers are my strength. And if you don't have someone like that...if you can't understand that...then I feel sorry for you."_

_She had merely glared at him, chest tight with anger and, surprisingly, sorrow. Because if Leonardo was good at __**anything**__, it was putting his finger on the truth. And the truth was that she didn't have the kind of strength that he was talking about. She had never thought she needed it. Her own strength had been enough...until Ch'rell was gone, and then it wasn't, so the Shredder became her strength. And it had nearly destroyed her._

_But if __**she**__ was good at anything, it was concealing the truth, so the blue-masked Turtle saw nothing of the turbulent swirl of thoughts behind her eyes._

"_You've insisted that this truce be temporary," he was saying. "I've agreed to that. I suppose I can't expect anything more. But know this." His eyes narrowed and despite her fury she couldn't suppress the feeling of dread that coiled in her stomach when she saw the lethal promise in his eyes. "Your vendetta is with __**me**__. Not my father. Not my friends. And not my brothers. When this is over, if you decide to come after me, that's your choice. But if you ever try to attack my family, I will burn the Foot to the ground."_

_She gave the buckle on her gauntlet a fierce yank. "You should be grateful that I have agreed to a truce at all," she said coldly. They stared at each other for a heartbeat or two. Even though Leonardo was a head shorter than she, Karai had the disconcerting feeling that he was looking down on her. _

"_We leave for the rendezvous point in ten minutes," he said quietly. "Be ready." And without a whisper of sound, he was gone._

He had, of course, been right. Again. Hun and the Purple Dragons hated him. Bishop and his men wanted him either dead or locked in a research facility. But nobody could deny that there was something undeniably magnetic and compelling about him, and they followed him anyway. And they had won.

Karai rose from her bed and paced to the window. She missed the sight of the city lights spread out before her in a sparkling carpet from her penthouse in the Foot building. But it would be months before the building was habitable again. If she even chose to return at all. She had sent the clan to ground indefinitely.

The barbed metal armor was locked in the closet. The door was closed, but she imagined that she could feel the red-eyed glare of the empty helmet boring into her back. The demon was dead, so assuming her role as the Shredder wouldn't cause her harm. At least, she assumed so. But she wasn't sure what she would do. And, more disconcertingly, she didn't know what she was going to do about Leonardo. Until four days ago, she would have killed him on sight. Their truce was over now, she supposed, since the Shredder was destroyed. But deep in her heart of hearts, she was beginning to wonder if killing him might be wrong. And not just because he had saved her life.

Karai was not used to doubt. Firm resolve had always driven her – as the Shredder's daughter, then as his second-in-command, and then as she had resumed the role of the Shredder herself. She had always had a goal. And now...

Uncertainty.

She felt unmoored, a ship without a rudder. The only moments when she had felt grounded in the past hellish ten days had been when she had felt Chaplin's surprisingly strong hand enfolding hers. But she wasn't sure what she was going to do about _that_, either.

She leaned her heated forehead against the cool windowpane and let the darkness of the overcast night wash over her turbulent mind until she wasn't thinking anything at all.

* * *

**If you're lost and alone  
****Or you're sinking like a stone  
****Carry on**

Tora was the first to leave, which didn't surprise anyone. What _did_ surprise them was the way he responded to Mikey's farewell bow by putting his arm across the Turtle's shoulders and giving him a spare, sharp smile. Faraji departed not long after. He wouldn't say where he was going, just that he had some obligations to keep. Adam lingered a few days longer until his wrenched knee recovered, working in the lab with Donatello before packing his bags and heading for Croatia by way of Miami – he wanted to see his brother before resuming his duty, whatever it had been.

The next evening, Raph stood just outside the door to the lair, watching Joi shoulder her one small bag in the red light of the dying day. "Duty calls, huh?"

She gave him a sideways smile. "Something like that. I had a contract to fulfill before the Tribunal threw a magical monkey wrench in my plans."

"So where you off to? Unless that's a big secret, too." He crossed his arms, leaning his shoulder against the side of the building.

"Hawaii. At least, for now."

"Nice gig."

"Yeah, it's just gorgeous this time of year. The Yakuza are in full bloom." She smirked as a chuckle tumbled free from his chest. "Tell Mike I'll say hi to Tora for him. I have a feeling that he's been working against the Yakuza from Japan."

"Listen, I know after fighting an undead army, organized crime syndicates are gonna seem like a walk in the park, but if you ever get in a tight spot..." His hand flicked out and she had to move fast to catch the small, dark green object he tossed toward her. One side was grooved like the back of a turtle's shell, and the other had several different-colored, unmarked buttons. "Don removed the homing beacon and tracking chip," Raph explained. "And right now it's set so it won't take incoming calls, but if you take off the back and flip the green toggle in the center, it'll go back to the default setting and work like a normal phone."

Her thumb traced lightly over the smooth buttons and she looked up at him, humor in her eyes. "I take it the red button is you?"

"Don't knock the color-coding. It's saved a lot of lives." He spoke jokingly, but Joi was pretty sure that he wasn't exaggerating.

She sighed, hefting the shell-cell in her hand. "Raph, thanks, but I go to a lot of remote places and I don't think this will be much use."

He backhanded the air dismissively. "Nah, it'll work. Trust me. Donny's got some sort of highly technical and probably highly illegal relay piggybacked off the defense satellites – "

"...That I probably don't want to know about," she finished, grinning at him.

He grinned back. "That you probably don't want to know about."

She tucked the phone into her bag and settled the pack more securely on her shoulders. "Well, this past year has definitely not gone the way I thought it would, but in spite of being abducted by ancient immortal ninjas and sort of dying twice...I wouldn't change anything."

"Yeah, kept things from getting boring." His smile softened and he held out his hand. "Keep your head down, Joi."

"You, too." She grasped his hand warmly for a brief moment, then turned to go. "Goodbye, Raphael."

He stood leaning against the wall until the sun sank below the horizon and cool shadow crept across the pond.

**May your past be the sound of your feet upon the ground  
****Carry on**

Leo stood a short distance inside the main tunnel to the lair, arms folded loosely across his chest, shell resting against the mossy stone. He didn't hear footsteps, but he felt Raph's presence as his brother approached, and he lifted his head, waiting. Raph stopped a few feet away and just looked at him for a minute before heaving a not-really-annoyed sigh and letting his shell clunk against the stone as he leaned against the wall beside his brother.

"You feel the need to watch the sun set or something?" the red-banded Turtle asked gruffly.

Leo smiled quietly. "Or something."

The last traces of daylight faded from the sky and soft flickers of golden light danced through the air as the first fireflies emerged. Raph shifted his weight slightly against the wall. It was a small movement, but when he was still again, his shoulder was resting against his brother's.

"So...what now, Fearless?"

"Now...things get back to normal, I guess."

"That bad, huh?"

They both laughed, and Leo's heart lightened as he felt the last of Raphael's tension melt away. "Actually," he said, "April and Casey suggested we get out of the city for a couple weeks. Spend some time out at the farm."

"What about the Purple Dragons? The cops are gonna have their hands full just with the everyday stuff for a while...you give Hun an inch and he thinks he's a ruler. Or a yardstick, which I think may be overcompensation."

Leo rolled his eyes a little at his brother's comment. "Actually, Mikey's been talking to the Silver Sentry. After we'd been gone for a couple months, the Justice Force noticed an uptick in gang activity. So they've been keeping an eye on things a little more closely. And they're planning on paying special attention to the Purple Dragons and the other gangs for a while longer."

"So they don't need us," Raph said flatly.

"They can spare us for a while," Leo corrected gently. He turned to look at his brother, a black silhouette against the faint light beaming into the tunnel from the rising moon. "And besides that..._we_ need us. The past eight months have been one long mystic boot camp. I think I'm ready for a vacation."

Leo couldn't see Raph's face, but from the tone of his voice he knew exactly which teasing smirk was on his face. "So...by 'vacation', you mean no training?"

He smiled and jostled his shoulder against his brother's. "I didn't say that."

"You're hopeless." Quick as a striking snake, Raphael's arm hooked around the back of his neck and Leo found his head pinned between a thick biceps and Raph's side as his brother started hauling him down the tunnel back to the lair in a headlock.

Leo grabbed hold of Raph's belt to keep from falling. "What's that, Raph? You want to run through all the katas first thing in the morning?"

"What's that, Leo? You want me to drop you on your face?" But after a few more steps, the tight grip around his neck eased and Raph set him properly on his feet. "There. Don't say I never do anything for you."

Leo just grinned at him. "Love you, too." Raphael grimaced and rolled his eyes, planting his hand on Leo's snout and giving his brother's face a shove. But the sound of Leo's laughter softened the habitually sharp gleam in his amber eyes.

The two brothers made their way down a side tunnel and slipped silently through the hidden entrance to the lair. The tantalizing smell of popcorn warmed the air as they entered the main living room. Splinter's ears twitched and he looked over, giving his sons a welcoming smile. April was sitting on the couch, watching Casey and Don race each other in Mario Kart.

Mikey emerged from the kitchen, balancing a deep bowl of popcorn in each hand. "Hey, you're just in time for movie night!" he called, grinning widely.

"What are we watching?" Leo asked, sidestepping Raphael to vault over the back of the couch and land gracefully on the cushions.

"Anything but a disaster movie!" April piped up. "My whole _life_ is a disaster movie."

"Ha!" Don crowed. "Eat my dust, Jones!" The tinny sound of artificial trumpets blared as the purple-masked Turtle's avatar crossed the finish line first.

"Geez, who knew you were so competitive?" Casey groused. Three green hands (one of them still balancing a bowl of popcorn) shot into the air. He rolled his eyes.

Mikey set the popcorn bowls down with a flourish. "I know just the thing to take your mind off the mayhem and mania," he announced. "Any objections to 'The Princess Bride'?"

"We haven't watched that one in forever," Don said, unplugging the game controllers and carefully winding up the cords.

Casey made a face. "Guys...really? 'The Princess Bride'? I've never _heard_ of a more sissy-sounding movie. I think all of you should give up a man card right now. Or, whatever, a Turtle card. Maybe two cards."

Mikey stared. "Wait...are you telling me you've never seen it?"

"What, do I _look_ like a chick? No!"

"Who _are_ you, Dude? Who makes it to adulthood without experiencing that movie? You really missed out."

"I don't know, Mikey," Don said slyly. "I think if we watched that movie, Casey might..._pout._" Raph let out a sharp bark of laughter, ignoring the heated glare from his friend.

Mikey grinned as he sat on the floor in front of Raphael's chair. "Aw, you never know. He might like something..._new_."

"Either that, or he'll tell us he's..._through_."

Casey winged a sofa pillow at Raph, who was still laughing. "Donny, will you just put the movie in, already?"

Don smirked. "As you wish." His grin widened as his brothers laughed. Although Casey looked put-upon, he settled next to April on the couch and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

Leo sighed happily, casting a glance around the room at his family. Raph was sitting sideways in his chair with his legs dangling over the arm so Mike had room. He reached over his brother's shoulder into their shared popcorn bowl. Don stretched on his stomach on the floor with a pillow bunched beneath his arms to prop up his head so he could see the TV. Beside Leo on the couch, April curled a little closer against Casey's side and rested her head on his shoulder. The last of the annoyance faded from Casey's eyes as he looked down at her and very softly kissed the top of her head, a sight that warmed something inside Leo's chest. He'd noticed something different about them since they'd been back...a certain depth and light in their eyes when they looked at each other. Things were about to change for them, he could tell.

An annoyed growl from Raphael pulled him out of his thoughts. "Will you two knock it off?" he said, glaring at Mike and Don. "We're about to _watch_ the movie. We don't need you to quote the whole thing for us."

"But Westley," Mikey chirped in a falsetto voice. "What about the R.O.U.S's?"

"Rodents of unusual size?" Donny answered carelessly. "I don't think they exist." Leo burst out laughing as both brothers cracked up at the age-old joke. April shot a half-startled, half-apologetic glance at Splinter before she broke down completely into helpless giggles, and even Raphael smiled grudgingly...but he still smacked Mikey on the back of the head and threw a fistful of popcorn at Donatello.

Splinter just rolled his eyes to the ceiling. "Every time they watch this movie..." he said as he heaved a long-suffering sigh.

With an effort, Leo controlled his laughter and passed the popcorn to his father. Some things were about to change...but it made his heart glad to know that others would always stay the same.

**We are shining stars  
****We are invincible  
****We are who we are  
****On our darkest day  
****When we're miles away  
****So we'll come  
****We will find our way home**

**No one's ever gonna stop us now**


End file.
